Information Technology Ambidexterity-Driven Patient Agility, Patient Service- and Market Performance: A Variance and fsQCA Approach

Modern hospitals are on the brink of a monumental change. They are currently exploring their options to digitally transform their clinical procedures and overall patient engagement. This work thoroughly investigates how hospital departments in the Netherlands can simultaneously leverage their strategic exploration of new IT resources and practices and exploit their current IT practices, i.e., IT ambidexterity, to drive digital transformation. Specifically, we investigate IT ambidexterity’s role in shaping patient agility at the departmental level, i.e., the ability to sense patients’ needs and respond accordingly. In this study, we use the dynamic capability view as our theoretical lens to develop a theoretical model with associated hypotheses and test it using cross-sectional survey data from 90 clinical hospital departments in the Netherlands. We use partial least squares (PLS) structural equation modeling (SEM) and a Fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) approach for our analyses. This study shows that IT ambidexterity positively influences patient agility, providing a foundation for the achievement of high patient service and market performance. Furthermore, this study’s outcomes show that IT ambidexterity is present in each configuration following the fsQCA analyses, showcasing the vital role of a dual strategic approach to IT practices. The study outcomes support the theorized model and the subsequently developed IT-driven patient agility framework and illuminate how to transform clinical practice and drive patient agility.