Lin YJ, Wan T, Chern J, Luu S; Academy for Health Services Research and Health Policy. Meeting.

Abstr Acad Health Serv Res Health Policy Meet. 2002; 19: 26.

Chang Jung Christian University, 396 Chang Jung Rd., Sec. 1, Kway Jen, Tainan, 711; Tel: 886-6-2780932; Fax: 886-6-2780932; E-mail: yenjulin@mail.cju.edu.tw

RESEARCH OBJECTIVE: This study was designed to understand the strategic thinking and experiences of the hospital executives on integration orientation in Taiwan. From hospital integration point of view, it was aimed to: 1) understand the present inter-organization relationships; 2) explore the actual experiences from the existent inter-organization relationships; 3) identify the most fitted integration model of inter-organization relationships; and 4) understand the expectations of hospital executives in organization integration. STUDY DESIGN: The structured questionnnaire, including the issues of inter-organization realtionship, the integartion model, the values created from the past actual experinece of organization cooperation and the expected potential benefits of organization integartion, was designed, delivered and collected. Descriptive analysis, factor analysis and t-test were used in this study. POPULATION STUDIED: Five hundred and fourteen hospitals were identified from the Taiwan National Hospital Accreditation List (1998-2000). The hospital executives were surveyed in the period of May and June, 2001 through mails. One hunderd and twenty-seven hospitals responded and the response rate was 25%. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: The study found that: 1) 48% of the response hospitals are freestanding; 2) the respondents views Mixed Model (45%) to be the most fitted integration model in Taiwan, followed by "Affiliation Model", "Equity Model", and "Staff Model"; 3) the respodents appreciate the potential benefits from the organization integartion; however, they viewed organizational languages, decision making model, commitment and culture as the biggest challenges faced by health care managers; and 4) in terms of values created, hospital executives overally rank lower in orgaznaition cooperation and expect higher in orgazanitinal integration (t test, p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Facing with the cost containment imposed by National Health Insurance Bureau in Taiwan, hospital executives have been making their efforts to find a way to control medical costs and simultaneously, to improve quality of care. However, to establish a real integrated organization in Taiwan has a lot of challenges, especially from the organizational territory (autonomy) perspective. Most hospital executives would like to adopt more diversified inter-organizational relationships to share the integration values. And they expected the organization integration in the future would benefit more than the loose organization cooperation did in the past. IMPLICATIONS FOR POLICY, DELIVERY OR PRACTICE: Integration orientation in hospital industry in Taiwan PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE: Taiwan National Science Council

Publication Types:

• Meeting Abstracts

Keywords:

• Cooperative Behavior
• Decision Making
• Decision Making, Organizational
• Hospitals
• National Health Programs
• Taiwan
• organization & administration
• hsrmtgs

Other ID:

• GWHSR0002420

UI: 102274096

From Meeting Abstracts