How digital applications can facilitate knowledge sharing in health care

Abstract

Purpose This paper focuses on knowledge sharing in health care. The aim of the paper is to further understand how digital applications can facilitate knowledge sharing between different care providers and health-care professionals. Design/methodology/approach The paper is based on a qualitative action case study, performed as a formative intervention study as a Change Laboratory, where a digital application concerning wound support was used. The Change Laboratory was used for knowledge sharing in the assessment and treatment process of wounds. The collected data was then thematically analyzed. Findings The findings show how digital applications can facilitate knowledge sharing, but also the need for complementary collaborative sessions. The main contribution is the rich description of how digital applications together with these sessions can facilitate knowledge sharing. Originality/value This paper shows that activities as collaborative sessions performed on the organizational level prove to support knowledge sharing and learning when a new digital application has been implemented in the work process. It also shows that these sessions contributed to identifying new knowledge that has potential for being included in the application and hence are important to keeping the application updated and relevant over time.