The Effects of Hospital Ownership On Nontraditional Services

Authors:
  • SSStephen M. Shortell
    Stephen M. Shortell
  • EMEllen M. Morrison
    Ellen M. Morrison
  • SHSusan L. Hughes
    Susan L. Hughes
  • BFBernard Friedman
    Bernard Friedman
  • JCJames Coverdill
    James Coverdill
  • LBLee Berg
    Lee Berg
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Abstract
Prologue: To compete effectively with emerging health care delivery systems for patients and their dollars, hospitals (once the traditional base for medical care) have begun to offer a wider range of services. As hospitals diversify, they also feel pressure, both from outside the system and within, to contain costs. How do these trends affect the number and variety of services available to consumers? Stephen Shortell and his colleagues examine the impact of today s environment on multihospital systems, publishing for the first time the results of an ongoing study comparing selected system-affiliated hospitals with their market area competitors. Shortell, who holds a doctorate in behavioral sciences from the University of Chicago, has been researching hospital behavior for the past twelve years. He is the A.C. Bueller Distinguished Professor of hospital and health services management and professor of organization behavior at Northwestern University's J. L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management, and directs...