In recent years, American health care has shifted toward an emphasis on population health in communities. National data from the American Hospital Association Annual Survey of Hospitals are used to describe the prevalence of 26 services provided by general hospitals that could contribute to health promotion and disease prevention (HPDP). Cross‐sectional descriptive analyses, based on national data sources, linked HPDP services to hospital characteristics, and factor analysis identified significant categories of HPDP activities. The results showed that many specific HPDP services are offered by thousands of hospitals, but prevalence, distribution, and availability of the services are uneven across the size and ownership of hospitals and their communities. Policy initiatives could increase the prevalence of hospitals’ health promotion and disease prevention services, thereby improving the health status of their communities.

Collaboration and linkages with other organizations enable hospitals to expand HP. Hospitals should apply management methods (not just HP methods) to effectively offer HP services. Support for small hospitals' HP is needed.

In past years, many SHAs formed in local urban markets to better compete for managed care contracts. In response to 1990s forces, these SHAs appear to have adapted product, production, and selling orientations to their markets, aimed at large institutional purchasers of health care. However, health care markets have evolved differently than anticipated. SHAs and their hospitals should now adopt the marketing orientation and focus more on patients and enrollees.

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Managers in health care organizations (HCOs) must perform many processes and activities, such as planning goals, designing organization structure, leading people, motivating employees, making decisions, and resolving conflict. How they do all this strongly affects the performance and outcomes of their organizations and themselves. Some managers develop a usual way of performing their jobs and achieve some success with a preferred method of leading or a favorite approach to motivating. However, their success will be limited if they always rely on a standard "1-size-fits-all" approach. This is because contingency factors influence the effectiveness of a given approach to managing. The "best" approach depends on contingency factors, including the situation and the people involved. Managers should choose an approach to fit with the changing contingency factors. This article explains why and how managers should develop a contingency approach to managing HCOs. The development of contingency theory is briefly described. Practical application of contingency management is explained for leading, motivating, decision making, and resolving conflict. By using a contingency approach, managers can be more effective when managing their HCOs.