Valuing hospital investment in information technology: does governance make a difference?
This article examines the investment of patient care information technology (IT) systems by a nationwide sample of U.S. short-term acute care hospitals and the resulting impact these systems have in the productivity of institutions from 1990-1998. Of particular interest is the extent to which for-profit and not-for-profit hospitals obtain different results from the adoption of lT systems. We find that the marginal effect of IT on for-profit hospital productivity is to reduce the number of days supplied, while in not-for-profit hospitals the marginal effect of IT is to increase the quantity of services supplied. This resulting effect is consistent with the differing objectives of not-for-profit and for-profit hospitals and demonstrates the positive marginal value of IT as a sustainable and prudent investment.
Parente
Stephen T
ST
University of Minnesota, USA. sparente@csom.umn.edu
Van Horn
R Lawrence
RL
D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D003625:Data Collection; D019992:Databases as Topic; D004059:Diffusion of Innovation; D006739:Hospital Administration; D006751:Hospital Information Systems / Q000191:economics*; D006777:Hospitals, Proprietary / Q000191:economics; D006788:Hospitals, Voluntary / Q000191:economics; D016347:Medical Records Systems, Computerized; D014481:United States