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Cited by 13Mobile Health and mHealth ApplicationsHealth, Technology, Consumer BehaviorTechnology Adoption and User Behaviour

Leveraging the TOE Framework: Examining the Potential of Mobile Health (mHealth) to Mitigate Health Inequalities

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Bin Naeem, Salman, Azam, Mehreen, Kamel Boulos, Maged N., Bhatti, Rubina·2024·Information
DOI 10.3390/info15040176
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Abstract

(1) Aims and Objectives: Mobile health (mHealth) is increasingly becoming a favorite healthcare delivery solution in underserved areas around the globe. This study aims to identify the influence of technology–organization–environment (TOE) factors on mHealth adoption and to assess the influence of mHealth on the reduction in health disparities in the context of healthcare delivery in low-resource settings. (2) Methods: A cross-sectional survey of physicians and nurses was carried out at six hospitals in the public and private health sectors in Pakistan. The survey’s theoretical foundation is based on the technology–organization–environment (TOE) framework. TOE constructs (relative advantage, compatibility, management support, organizational readiness, external support, and government regulations) were used to develop hypotheses. The hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling (SEM). (3) Results: Findings from this study show that management support and external support are the two main predictors of mHealth adoption among healthcare professionals. The study proposes an mHealth adoption model that can significantly contribute towards improving medical outcomes, reducing inefficiencies, expanding access, lowering costs, raising quality, making medicine more personalized for patients, and gaining advantages from mHealth solutions in order to reduce health disparities. (4) Conclusion: The study suggests that there is no single approach that could support mHealth adoption. Instead, a holistic approach is required that considers cultural, economic, technological, organizational, and environmental factors for successful mHealth adoption in low-resource settings. Our proposed mHealth model offers guidance to policymakers, health organizations, governments, and political leaders to make informed decisions regarding mHealth implementation plans.

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  • The TOE framework emphasizes identifying facilitators and barriers to the adoption of a specific technology rather than providing guidance on governing the broader range of technologies implemented within organizations.

    “The framework emphasizes identifying facilitators and barriers to the adoption of a specific technology, rather than providing guidance on governing the broader range of technologies implemented within organizations23–26.”

    From Establishing organizational AI governance in healthcare: a case study in Canada (2025) · cites this paper as [24]

    The Study Objectives and Conclusions sections describe using TOE to identify factors influencing adoption of a specific technology, mHealth. The paper does not state that TOE lacks guidance for governing a broader range of technologies within organizations, so that contrast is unsupported. (LLM, conf=0.83)

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Authors
Bin Naeem, S., Azam, M., Kamel Boulos, M. N., & Bhatti, R.
Affiliations
  • Department of Information Management, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur 63100, Pakistan
  • Islamia University of Bahawalpur (PK)
  • School of Medicine, University of Lisbon, 1649-028 Lisbon, Portugal
ORCID
Venue
Information
Publisher
MDPI AG
Published
2024-03-23
Volume
15
Issue
4
Pages
176
ISSN
2078-2489 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.3390/info15040176
OpenAlex
W4393149087
Cited by
13
References
67
Citations by year
2026: 4 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 1
FWCI
7.64
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Information (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Funders
National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Mobile Health and mHealth Applications
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › Health Information Management › Health, Technology, Consumer Behavior
  • Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › Information Systems and Management › Technology Adoption and User Behaviour
Keywords
mobile health, mHealth adoption, technology-organization-environment framework, health disparities, resource-limited settings, management support, external support, organizational readiness, relative advantage, compatibility, government regulation, healthcare workers, doctors and nurses, Pakistan

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