Post date: Oct 8, 2010 6:15:06 AM
One objective of this website is to bring together the healthcare and IS bodies of literature. Despite the ubiquity of workarounds in practice, there is surprisingly little research in the IS field about workarounds.
In the AIS Senior Scholars' Basket of Journals (aka Top Basket), there are only two articles that mention workarounds in the title over the past decade
Azad B and King N (2008) Enacting computer workarounds within a medication dispensing system. European Journal of Information Systems 17(3), 264–278.
Ferneley E H and Sobreperez P (2006) Resist, comply or workaround? An examination of different facets of user engagement with information systems. European Journal of Information Systems 15(4), 345-356.
If one digs deeper, workarounds do appear selectively in the IS literature (e.g., Alvarez, 2008). But in contrast, workarounds are well recognized in the healthcare field as ubiquitous phenomena. There are at least half a dozen articles with workaround in title and many more that describe various workarounds encountered. This website speaks to examples of role substitution (e.g., workaround) - surrogate prescribers and EMR scribes. Maybe the ubiquity of workarounds is the problem? Workaround research with a theoretical orientation is missing in action (MIA) because workaround practices are so prevalent in the workplace. I wonder if workarounds are more than "unintended use" or "resistance"? Stay tuned as my colleague and I dig deeper.