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The aim of the paper is the study of information systems as mechanisms to manage existing and widespread knowledge in health care organizations; this is a platform that supports the processes of communication and knowledge sharing. The paper seeks to focus on the electronic medical record (EMR) as a tool to manage the integration of knowledge and operational information among health care through the coordination of the interdependencies.

The paper develops a methodology characterized by a mixed theoretical and analyzing the key documents on the context and literature on health information systems and an empirical part based on the use of semi‐structured interviews and questionnaires to the working group responsible for the project “medical records”.

The contributions of research can be found in the descriptive analysis obtained by the process of implementation of integrated medical records (IMRs) within the structures investigated. This can lead to highlight possible areas for improvement in the management of the construction and operation of the EMR.

The originality lies in the possibility of verifying the conditions of effective integration of knowledge to manage health problems, through the use of IMR as a mechanism for additional information. Possible value added is the description and encoding of knowledge available within the health departments.

This editorial of the special issue of Measuring Business Excellence is devoted to introduce and discuss a knowledge‐based perspective of innovation and performance improvement in health care (HC).

The approaches, evidences and insights discussed in this introduction are based on the discussion of the topics of the conference “International Forum on Knowledge Assets Dynamics” organised in June 2012 in Matera, Italy. After a brief analysis of the importance of the HC for research and practice related to the reform of HC sector that encompassed most OECD countries in the last 15 years and the diffusion of the new public management philosophy, the article presents a rationale explaining the roots and the meanings of a knowledge‐based perspective of innovation and performance improvement in HC. The model of the innovation cycle is introduced and discussed. Finally, the article provides an overview of the papers of the special issue.

At the conference, leading experts discussed the importance of identifying and managing new key‐value drivers in order to face emergent competitive scenarios, and research and management practices for addressing complexity, uncertainty and changes of today's business landscape. This article as well as all the contributions to the special issue provide useful implications both for research and practice. In particular they support the analysis about the resources, the assets, the processes, the factors and the contingency conditions playing a role in determining the improvement of the innovative capacity and consequently the global performance of the HC organisations.

This article – and the contributions to the special issue – deal with different aspects which are important in the discussion about how fostering innovation and performance improvement in HC organisations exploiting knowledge‐based factors. The articles also deal with the approaches, tools, methods and techniques that disentangle the mechanisms by which different knowledge‐based factors, separately or interdependently, contribute to improve HC organisations' innovation dynamics and organisational performance.