Innovation in university hospital services: The potential of telehealth for co-creation of value

Abstract Objective: Telehealth enables consumers to overcome conventional geo-graphical and conceptual limitations by easily accessing online health-care services from global providers. Therefore, this research aims to analyze telehealth services in the co-creation of value to enhance inno-vation in university hospitals. These hospitals serve as reference spaces for building scientific knowledge and for demonstrating a growing rele-vance in practices that can extend across the health system. Originality/value: We present a theoretical analysis that can serve as a research tool for health managers, facilitating dialogue between theory and practice. Considering that telehealth is an ad hoc innovation, it can create ruptures and trigger strategic responses to co-create value while managing organizational barriers that can affect the process’s outcomes. Design/methodology/approach: We searched five databases: Biblioteca Virtual em Saúde, PubMed, EBSCO, Scopus, and Web of Science. The search terms were related to two dimensions of descriptors with their respective variations: telehealth and university hospital. For data analysis, we articulated the Service-Dominant Logic theory and the Integrative Approach of the theory of innovation in services. Findings: The search returned 1,447 articles, of which 78 were suitable for analysis. Results show that telehealth is a key part of the digital transformation of university hospitals, contributing to improved health service provision. The use of information technologies enables more efficient service delivery, as users can gain greater control over their well-being and interact more quickly and effectively in data sharing.