Purpose The health research information system (HRIS) is a continuous process and an important factor for the visibility of higher educational institutions. Here is an attempt to analyze the worldwide research context on HRIS by focusing on its contribution to responsible innovation and sustainable health ecosystems. It attends to the intellectual structure, communities of practice and thematic evolution of HRIS research, emphasizing its relationship to ethical data governance and sustainability. It searches for the intellectual structure, nodes of collaboration and theme evolution of HRIS and highlights its fit with ethical data governance and sustainability. Design/methodology/approach A bibliometric study was carried out on the published documents indexed in Scopus and the PubMed database during 2015–2025. Performance analysis (annual publication output, citations, h-index, preferred sources, authors, institutions and countries) was further enriched by science mapping techniques, including co-authorship, co-citation, bibliographic coupling and keyword co-occurrence. For theme analysis, motor, basic, niche and early research themes were selected based on the use of thematic maps and evolution analysis. Findings The study identified 5,588 eligible publications from 2015–2025, showing a 44.65% annual growth rate. The documents averaged 32.07 citations, 10.3 co-authors and 40.37% international collaboration. Keyword analysis revealed strong links between innovation, sustainability and HRIS, reflecting robust academic engagement and evolving global research trends in health information systems. Practical implications The analysis has implications for both policymakers, health institutions and research managers to optimize the use of HRIS in advancing inclusion, transparency and shared value creation and for developing links between health research and societal benefits. Originality/value This is the first bibliometric analysis that placed HRIS between the dual perspectives of responsible innovation and sustainable health ecosystems. It adds to the literature by reviewing the knowledge body, identifying research frontiers and prescribing a future agenda for ethically based, impact-focused HRIS.
Pradhan et al. (Mon,) studied this question.