Health Care Administration: Principles and Practices.

Health Care Administration: Principles and Practices This textbook presents many principles and examples of practices that are used frequently in the administration and management of health care institutions. However, the information presented is most applicable for persons who are employed by or who provide consultation to a hospital. The book was developed to update and expand on Hospital Organization and Management, by McEachern, and to provide current information about health care administration.

The contributing authors present several different professions and areas of expertise. New information available in the book relates to many of the changes that have occurred in health care administration, such as ambulatory care services, health maintenance organizations, preferred provider organizations, joint ventures by hospitals, multihospital systems, health management specialties (eg, data processing, marketing, and management engineering), and federal funding programs available to specific recipients of health care.

Part 1 of the book contains information about the historical development of hospitals; ways to plan for and develop health care facilities; suggestions on how to integrate the activities associated with planning, marketing, development, and public relations; material on strategic planning in health care; sources of financing for health care facilities; and concepts of quality assurance, multihospital systems, joint-venture opportunities, and hospital information systems. There are other organizational aspects of the hospital presented in this section of the book.

Part 2 presents information more specifically concerned with the operations of the hospital and the health care industry. Facilities management, materials management, environmental services, clinical information services, and ambulatory care services are representative of this section. Specific departments cited include admitting, laboratory, dietetics, pharmacy, nursing, and radiology. Noticeably absent is any reference to physical therapy, occupational therapy, or rehabilitation services and several other direct patient-care services or departments.

The variability in topics and authors caused a variability in the extent and depth of discussion. Particularly well-written chapters are those on nursing education administration, organization of the medical staff, management engineering, human resources, and materials management. For some of the topics there are no or very few reference citations, and for others the reference list is extensive.

This book would be an excellent text for the student enrolled in a graduate program directed toward hospital or health services administration. I also recommend it as a reference for the physical therapist who directs or coordinates a physical therapy or rehabilitation service in a hospital. Any person involved with the central administration of a hospital or nursing home would benefit from reading this book, as would the faculty member who provides instruction about health care administration to various health care students.

In summary, the editors and contributing authors have fulfilled their objective of providing a textbook that is useful as a reference for persons interested in or involved with the administration and management of a hospital or similar health care facility.