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152 Part One Organizations, Management, and the Networked Enterprise

Sources: BCS (2006). Smart House holds key to future aged care needs, Baptist Community
Services NSW & ACT, Media Release, 1st May 2006, http://www.bcs.org.au/resource/
R0058Corp.pdf.

Case contributed by Dr. Lesley Land, University of New South Wales

he opening case highlights a number of ethical issues that are specific to
Thealthcare for the ageing population. However, some of these are recur-
ring issues in other healthcare domains, or in organizations in general (such as
privacy and security). For example, the data collected from the monitoring and
tracking of consumers can be both beneficial from a business viewpoint (in the
opening case, it can improve the quality of life, and/or the clinical care of the
aged), but at the same time, it also creates opportunities for ethical abuse by
invading the privacy of consumers. Such ethical dilemmas arise in the building
of new information systems that potentially promise increased efficiency and
effectiveness in business processes. In this chapter, we wish to highlight the
need to be aware of the negative impact of information systems, alongside the
positive benefits. In many cases, management needs to create an acceptable
trade-off through the creation of appropriate policies and standards, as agreed
upon by all stakeholders, prior to system implementation.

The following part of the case is contributed by Robert Manderson, University
of Roehampton

The chapter-opening diagram highlights critical points raised by this case
and this chapter. Sydney’s ‘Smart House’ initiative demonstrates some of the po-
tential for sensor-driven ‘telecare’ technology in its indirect, administrative, and
direct, in-home, IT forms. Both administrators and consumers experienced the
limitations of the current technology in the form of administration burden due
to unintegrated systems, and lack of IT skills in both cases. In order to achieve
increased effi ciency in the delivery of ‘telecare’ technology and, at the same
time, improve the consumer’s in-home quality of care, further development of
the health care technologies is required. However, as sensor technology, and
information systems which make use of the data from these, evolve and become
more integrated using the Internet and the developments in cloud computing,
it has become increasingly apparent that major ethical considerations need to
be taken into account which address the concerns of consumers, particularly in
relation to privacy, security, safety, and increasingly cultural aspects.
The traditional approach to caring for the aged community within the health-
care system has been to increasingly support individuals through the use of
health care professionals in dedicated health care facilities. Whilst this is ex-
pected to be a continuing practice into the foreseeable future, Sydney’s ‘telec-
are’ initiative is an example of how technologies can support aged individuals in
their own home for longer than has been possible hitherto, enabling an increase
in the health care provider’s quality of care and a reduction in the administra-
tion burden. As ‘telecare’ technologies continue to be developed, and increas-
ingly used, major ethical and social issues need to be addressed to satisfy the
concerns of the individuals in the aged community who will be offered these
technologies to live normally at home. The Sydney ‘Smart House’ ‘telecare’ ini-
tiative has identifi ed a number of processes that should be included in future
information systems developments to address the ethical issues, including user-

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