ABSTRACT
As was explained in Chapter 1, eHealth has many potential benefits for health, healthcare, and well-being. However, in order to reach that potential, it is essential to ensure a good fit between the technology, its users, other stakeholders, and their context. A thorough understanding of the people and context in which a technology will be used is a prerequisite for achieving this fit. For example, the involved stakeholders need to be identified, it should be clear what the main problems within the specific context are, and the roles, tasks, activities, and protocols in a context need to be identified. These findings serve as the foundation for all subsequent activities within development, implementation, and evaluation processes. They also ensure that a technology fits within its context and is aligned with the characteristics and needs of stakeholders. Consequently, the CeHRes Roadmap prescribes that a thorough, iterative, multi-method contextual inquiry should be the first step in eHealth development (see Chapter 7).
