Management of academic health centers: The past, present, and future

Abstract

There are approximately 120 academic health centers (AHC) in the U.S. today whose mission is to deliver critical, tertiary care while also providing graduate medical education and conducting cutting-edge medical research. This traditional mission is overlaid by the social mission or the provision of highly specialized, complex or innovative care not readily available from other community providers to those who need it, including the poor. These missions make AHCs unique; however, they also are the focus of much controversy surrounding the management of AHCs. On one hand, there are those who advocate that AHCs operate similar to business organizations, thereby adapting strategies accordingly and revising their missions as necessary. On the other hand, there are those who believe in the uniqueness of AHCs and the necessity of upholding their traditional missions. Following from this, this paper presents a review of the literature that focuses on the changing environment facing AHCs and their strategic responses. In doing this, we argue that many are “copy cat” strategies that may have been successful for community hospitals and general business organizations but may not necessarily be appropriate for AHCs. At the end, this paper provides a debate on the mission and strategic direction of AHCs, particularly in light of the business or enterprise model and raises questions about the future management of these institutions.

Citation

Topping, S. and Malvey, D. (2002), "Management of academic health centers: The past, present, and future", Advances in Health Care Management (Advances in Health Care Management, Vol. 3), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 267-297. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1474-8231(02)03012-4