Abstract
Postmodernist writers question the applicability of universal narratives to contemporary societies. Through an investigation of the introduction/construction of information technology (IT) in the NHS, it is possible to discern processes of universalisation. The phenomena of money, needs, and time all provide universal media which orientate developments in IT. This orientation is possible in so far as these media facilitate universal communication whilst also allowing for an increase in differentiation.
Needs and time provide the possibility of investigating how universalisation proceeds as, unlike money, they are not already universal within a market economy. Needs require detaching from their traditional framework in order to facilitate universal communication, whereas time must be constructed so that objectivity and rationality are seen to prevail. Through the construction of temporal relations, money and needs can provide indeterminate futures which hold out the promise of universalised communication. It is argued that, as a consequence, investigations of the relevance of IT in health care provision must forgo the orientation towards ‘funding problems’.
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