Knowledge management in an ACO interview data.xlsx

Knowledge is a crucial asset for successful organizations. A healthcare organization transitioning to an Accountable Care Organization (ACO) must train its staff if it wants to improve its services. International consultants employed by healthcare organizations to help with this transformation are expected to play a critical role on the system implementation and management. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the knowledge transfer strategies used by international consultants to improve the performance of healthcare staff working in a Saudi healthcare organization during its transformation to an ACO.A qualitative approach with a single-case study was adopted. Semi-structured interviews were conducted between July and September 2020 to gather in-depth information regarding the context under consideration. A total of 19 healthcare workers from various healthcare facilities in Cluster X in Saudi Arabia participated in virtual interviews. The participants duly filled out an informed consent form, guaranteeing their anonymity and privacy, as well as the proper management of personal data in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation. The researcher acquired ethical clearance from Teesside University’s Research Ethics Committee by completing and submitting a request for ethical approval form. A thematic analysis approach was applied to analyze the collected data.Conclusions: The findings suggested that a holistic approach relying mainly on soft factors is crucial in supporting the successful transfer of knowledge from international consultants to Saudi healthcare workers. Specifically, soft factors consist of philosophical and behavioural matters. The study argues for additional research on the frequency and length of interactions between international consultants and frontline employees. It also suggests exploring the ideal duration of an onboarding process for newly hired consultants to effectively acquire the required knowledge and skills for successful knowledge transfer.