Influence of Health Information Management on Chronic Patient Care in Selected Public Healthcare Institutions in Rivers State, Nigeria: Using the Lens of Henry Fayol’s 14 Management Principles

Abstract

Delivery of healthcare services for patients with chronic disease is an enduring process of diverse activities that require accurate and quality health information management across different healthcare settings for expertise, collaboration, and informed decision-making and planning. As a result, this study investigated the influence of health information management on chronic patient care in selected healthcare institutions in Rivers State, Nigeria, using the lens of Henri Fayol’s 14 management principles. A cross-sectional descriptive survey research design with purposive and simple random sampling techniques was used. A sample of 101 respondents was used, and the collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistical tools like simple percentage frequency. The results of the grand total overall responses revealed that very high extent had 838 (59.3%) as the highest responses, followed by high extent option responses with 501 (35.5%), while very low extent had 23 (1.6), and it connotes that Fayol’s 14 managerial principles are fundamental for effective health information management for quality patient care and also established that poor leadership, rigid bureaucratic processes, poor employer-employee relations, and a lack of professional manpower, among others, are crucial factors that would hinder effective implementation of Fayol’s 14 principles of management in healthcare institutions. The study recommended that governments at all levels implement Fayol’s management principles and also facilitate an enabling environment for quality chronic patient care management.