Planning for hospitals: no focus, no strategy.
This is a study of the role of long-range planning and strategic management in 400 hospitals in the United States. It examines not only the structural aspects of planning but also investigates how the data base generated through the planning process is actually used in making operating decisions. In addition to a questionnaire survey of 400 hospitals on the structural aspects of planning, 78 personal interviews with functional heads and hospital administrators were conducted to analyse the operational part of the study. The major findings are that the possibilities and constraints of planning are remarkably similar to those of industrial corporations. The linkage of planning with operational decisions was found to be lacking. There were wide divergences in views between the functional heads and the hospital administrators in terms of internal and external activities, and also in performance reward relationship. These divergences are thought to be counter-productive in realizing the strategic focus of cost containment. Implications of the findings are also discussed.
D003363:Cost Control; D003625:Data Collection; D003659:Decision Making, Organizational; D006739:Hospital Administration; D010934:Planning Techniques; D014481:United States