10.36172/EKONOMISTI.2023.XIX.04.Tengiz.Verulava

Expanded Summary

Introduction: In order to better adapt to the constantly changing global and local environment, the main priority of the healthcare system is the operation of a stable hospital sector, for which it is necessary to constantly implement effective strategic management processes. The purpose of the study is to study the process of strategic management in the hospital sector of Georgia. Methodology: As part of the quantitative research, a survey of 23 top managers of 10 large hospitals in Tbilisi was conducted using a pre-structured questionnaire. Research findings: None of the hospitals used external consultants for strategic planning. Very few hospitals participated in lectures and trainings on strategic planning (13%), only one inpatient had a strategic planning committee (4.3%), most of the inpatients interviewed (87%) had a documented strategic plan; The management board was mostly involved in strategic planning (69.6%), and doctors were partially involved (30.4%). Only one third (34.8%) of hospitals develop their budget according to the strategic plan. Resources (43.5%), allocation of budget funds (47.8%) and identification and acquisition of new financial resources (47.8%) are not done in accordance with the goals and priorities of the strategic plan. The majority of hospitals are less likely to compare the results of the evaluation of the indicators of the achievement of the goals with the results of other hospitals (52.2%), to regularly report the values of the measures to achieve the goals of the strategic plan to the hospital (43.5%), to ensure the effectiveness of the strategic projects, to benchmark the measures to achieve the goals of other hospitals (78.3%). Discussion: Only a small number of inpatients have a strategic management process that affects their position and success in the healthcare market. Hospitals only develop a strategic plan, but the monitoring of their implementation is very weak and not based on scientifically sound methods. Physicians' skills in strategic planning are at a low level, which can be attributed to inappropriate competence, insufficient knowledge, wrong perception of strategic importance. To master such skills, it is necessary to conduct systematic trainings. Conclusion: it is appropriate for the state to limit by law that the medical organization must develop a documented strategic plan and have a strategic management manager. It is important to conduct educational trainings about the strategic management process in inpatients.

Key words: strategic management, strategy planning, strategy implementation, strategy evaluation, hospital, Tbilisi.