Impact of Bottom-Up Cocreation of Nursing Technological Innovations: Explorative Interview Study Among Hospital Nurses and Managers.

Abstract

Background: In health care, the use of nursing technological innovations, particularly technological products, is rapidly increasing; however, these innovations do not always align with nursing practice. An explanation for this issue could be that nursing technological innovations are developed and implemented with a top-down approach, which could subsequently limit the positive impact on practice. Cocreation with stakeholders such as nurses can help address this issue. Nowadays, health care centers increasingly encourage stakeholder participation, which is known as a bottom-up cocreation approach. However, little is known about the experience of nurses and their managers with this approach and the innovations it results in within the field of nursing care.

Objective: This study aims to explore nurses' and their managers' experiences with a bottom-up cocreation approach in order to assess the impact of this way of working and the resulting nursing technological innovations in an academic hospital. This insight can also inform decisions on whether the bottom-up cocreation approach should be more widely disseminated.

Methods: A qualitative study using semistructured interviews was conducted with 15 participants, including cocreator nurses, end-user nurses, and their managers. First, the data were thematically analyzed. In addition, a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats analysis was conducted.

Results: The various experiences of the participants were described in 3 main themes: enhanced attractiveness of the nursing profession, feeling involved due to a cocreation environment, and experienced benefits and challenges in using cocreated products. In addition, numerous strengths and opportunities perceived by the participants were identified as associated with the bottom-up cocreation approach and resulting useful products within nursing care; for example, cocreation contributed to job satisfaction and substantially contributed to the ease of use of the innovations that were developed.

Conclusions: The findings underscore that cocreation with nurses enhances the appeal of the nursing profession and aligns nursing technological innovations with practical nursing challenges. Embracing a culture of cocreation has the potential to foster a culture of continuous improvement and innovation in nursing care.