How technological innovations in performance measurement systems overcome management challenges in healthcare

Abstract

PurposeThe aim of this paper is to analyse how technological innovations in performance measurement systems make it possible to overcome some of the challenges that public healthcare organizations face where management and control are concerned. The changes that could be applied to the performance measurement system of healthcare organisations were analysed together with an evaluation of the responses developed in order to achieve these changes.Design/methodology/approachThe paper contains an in-depth case-study of a public university hospital which utilises an innovative information system.FindingsThe case-study highlights how technological innovations in performance measurement systems impact the management and monitoring information system in a public university hospital, through the implementation of a multidimensional management dashboard.Research limitations/implicationsThe limitation of this paper is that only one case-study is analysed, albeit in depth, while it would be interesting to consider more public university hospitals.Practical implicationsThe paper highlights the fundamental role of middle management in change processes in the healthcare sector.Originality/valueThe case-study highlights how critical the active involvement of middle management is in performance measurement and management, and how this is achieved thanks to the adoption of a simple, clear method which ensures comprehensible communication of the objectives, as well as the measurement of performance by means of radar plots.

Performance measurement systems in the health and care sector: Are targets and monitoring additional demands or resources for employees?

“…Performance measurement systems may trigger employee perceptions of decreasing job control, which can be experienced as increasing job demands, for example when nurses feel powerless and drowned in a sea of paperwork (Neno, 2008), or as Ippolito et al (2022) argued that such systems can hinder decision-making. Indeed, perceptions of additional or unnecessary job demands have been linked to failures of continuous improvement initiatives in healthcare.…”

Performance reporting in the healthcare sector: evidence from Italian healthcare organisations

“…2.1 Performance reporting in healthcare HCOs are service organisations characterised by a diversity of roles and a volume of responsibilities, including the delivery of HC services to the community (Span o et al, 2018;Levesque and Sutherland, 2020;Ippolito et al, 2022).…”

“…HCOs deal with a highly dynamic environment (Pizzi et al, 2020;Ippolito et al, 2022) in which several changes occurred, such as the increasing ageing population, medical and technological advances, the emergence of new diseases and treatments, as well as the budget constraints and increasing operating costs which make very difficult for the HCOs to manage these changes (Nicol o et al, 2023).…”

“…As a result, HCOs have started to pay more attention to efficiency and effectiveness in public service delivery, as well as to a greater need for transparency and Performance Measurement (PM) (Anessi-Pessina and Cant u, 2017;Khalid et al, 2019). In light of these events, a growing interest arose amongst scholars in the role played by the PM in the HC sector (Bonollo and Zuccardi-Merli, 2016;Ippolito et al, 2022).…”

“…Since they are influenced by a vast spectrum of elements, HCOs deal with a highly unpredictable environment (Markowicz and Rudawska, 2021;Nicol o et al, 2023). Moreover, being PSOs, they are called by their multiple stakeholders to account for the results achieved, as well as the quantities and quality of public resources used (Bonollo and Zuccardi-Merli, 2016;Ippolito et al, 2022;Nicol o et al, 2023). According to previous studies, public reporting of performance information serves various purposes for different audiences within HCOs, including consumers, clinicians and HC executive boards and managers (Canaway et al, 2018).…”