Understanding information systems implementation in the UK health sector: methodological innovation and the use of cause mapping

This paper is written with two objectives. First, to report some research results relating to the implementation of large Information Systems (IS) in the UK Health Sector. Second, the research method used is presented as an exemplar of the way an innovative technique, Multiple-Case Cause Mapping (MCCM), can strengthen and enrich case study based research. Implementing large strategic IS in the UK Health Sector has recently become the subject of much debate, as hospitals have undergone wide-reaching government-led institutional reforms involving the introduction of IT. In order to gain a deeper understanding of the associated organisational changes, an intensive research method was employed to capture the richness of context and processes. It involved a longitudinal multiple-case cause mapping investigation of the collective constructs and organisational processes impacting upon four hospital implementations. It is suggested that this qualitative research methodology could be of benefit to other areas of IS research.