Outsourcing in the Healthcare Industry: Information Technology, Intellectual Property, and Allied Aspects

30 Pages Posted: 11 Jan 2009 Last revised: 16 Jul 2014

See all articles by Amar Gupta

Amar Gupta

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

Raj K. Goyal

Harvard University - Harvard Medical School

Keith A. Joiner

University of Arizona - College of Medicine

Sanjay Saini

Partners Radiology

Date Written: January 10, 2009

Abstract

The healthcare industry is being impacted by advances in information technology in four major ways: first, a broad spectrum of tasks that were previously done manually can now be done by computers faster, better, and at lower costs; second, some tasks can be outsourced to other countries using inexpensive communications technology; third, detailed analysis of longitudinal and societal healthcare data can now be analyzed in acceptable periods of time; and fourth, the best medical expertise can be made available to patients without the need to physically transport the patient to the doctor or vice versa. Still, there are many healthcare situations in which face-to-face interaction is the only practical way to render medical assistance. After considering a number of healthcare scenarios in which one or more of the co-authors were involved, this paper concludes that healthcare will increasingly use a portfolio approach comprised of three closely-coordinated components seamlessly interwoven together: healthcare tasks performed by humans on-site; healthcare tasks performed by humans off-site, including tasks performed in other countries; and healthcare tasks performed by computers without direct human involvement. This three-pronged approach will lead to better healthcare services at the most cost-economic rates; further, it will gradually incorporate some of the principles of the 24-Hour Knowledge Factory framework. Organizations that impede or otherwise restrict the use of this multifaceted approach will see higher healthcare costs, and will gradually become less competitive in the global marketplace, as is happening with non-adapting organizations in several other sectors of the economy. Finally, this paper deals with intellectual property and legal aspects related to the proposed three-pronged healthcare services paradigm.

Keywords: Healthcare Outsourcing, Healthcare Offshoring, Offshore Outsourcing, 24-Hour Knowledge Factory, Medical Outsourcing

Suggested Citation

Gupta, Amar and Goyal, Raj K. and Joiner, Keith A. and Saini, Sanjay, Outsourcing in the Healthcare Industry: Information Technology, Intellectual Property, and Allied Aspects (January 10, 2009). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1325885 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1325885

Amar Gupta (Contact Author)

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) ( email )

77 Massachusetts Avenue
Building 32-256
Cambridge, MA 02139
United States
617-253-0418 (Phone)

Raj K. Goyal

Harvard University - Harvard Medical School

25 Shattuck St
Boston, MA 02115
United States

Keith A. Joiner

University of Arizona - College of Medicine ( email )

Department of History
Tucson, AZ 85721
United States

Sanjay Saini

Partners Radiology ( email )

101 Merrimac Street
3rd Floor
Boston, MA 02114
United States

Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?

Paper statistics

Downloads
1,009
Abstract Views
6,347
Rank
41,465
PlumX Metrics