The Rhetoric and Reality of Managerial Roles: The Case of Hospital Managers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Dr May Ghanem Alobaidy. University of Kent
United Kingdom
It is an Excellent and very comprehensive Study.
The study describes the Saudi healthcare system and services which suffer from critical problems and the lack of a well-developed framework to assess the effectiveness of the practices, roles and skills of the Saudi hospital manager (SHM). The literature indicated a scarcity of research performed on healthcare managers: most studies concerned business management and little research had been undertaken specifically on SHMs.
In response to this, the current study investigates the managerial practices of the SHM. It aims to identify any deficiencies or strengths in managerial roles and skills and seeks to ascertain from heads of department and physicians, their perceptions of the role of an effective manager: the criteria and qualifications, responsibilities and future expectations for improving healthcare services.
Initial research was built on the findings of the available literature on managerial roles in order to establish a context for the following empirical work. Mixed methodology was used, collecting qualitative and quantitative data. Evaluation of the SHM was conducted using a research assessment tool: a questionnaire. This was constructed using the literature review and a series of interviews conducted with heads of departments and physicians. It is then developed into a model, which illustrates the important areas that need consideration by management and managers in order to ensure an effective SHM.
The model revealed six vital managerial roles related to the SHM in addition to specific skills that facilitate these roles. This should constitute a valuable addition to the current body of management knowledge. The model can be used to appraise present SHMs and help to recruit new ones in a variety of sectors. To this end, the study tool can be used to evaluate current SHMs to improve and eliminate any perceived deficiencies. In addition, two prediction models were developed to assess two critical issues: the manager’s decision-making skills and the manager’s ability to improve employee performance.
The research undertaken for this study also identified various inadequacies related to the SHM, based on empirical findings. Thus, the study concludes that there is a real need to undertake efforts to improve the performance of SHMs, in order to minimize the effects of the various inadequacies on the healthcare system and the services provided. In this regard, the study proposes a number of recommendations with implications for hospital managers, academics and policy-makers.
MANAGER, LEADER, EVALUATION, ROLE, SKILL, HEALTHCARE, HOSPITAL, MODEL, EMPIRICAL STUDY, SAUDI ARABIA.
Computer File : English
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