Doctor-patient interaction in telemedicine: linking the structurational aspects to institutionalization

Abstract

This paper focuses on telemedicine implementation and use, which can be used to extend modern medical knowledge to remote areas in developing countries. By examining doctor patient interactions in two different contexts of telemedicine programs in India, we posit how the actors interacting over virtual media reinforce and shape the structures, which in turn, are determined by the institutional logics of the context. This process determines the adaption and evolution of a new technology. The paper draws on the tenets of structuration theory and institutional logics to extend the theoretical understanding of the process of evolution of a new technology and emphasizes the essential role of considering the existing institutional logics in the design and implementation process.