A Systems Acquisition Simulation: Using Virtual Teams In Health Care Informatics

The paper describes a systems acquisition simulation using virtual teams in a health care informatics course. The simulation enables virtual teams to participate in a systems acquisition decision for an electronic health records (EMR) system. Each virtual team used a web-based team communications discussion board to assess the attributes of each system, to discuss alternatives, and to reach a decision. The purpose of the research was to determine if high-performing virtual teams were distinguishable from low-performing teams in terms of the content and volume of task-related communications. The qualitative and quantitative analysis of team communications illustrated differences in the volume and content of electronic communications between highand low-performing teams. Since health care professionals work increasingly in virtual teams, understanding and developing communications skills in this domain are important to improving the quality and effectiveness of systems acquisition decisions.