Shared hospital services: study report

The study of shared hospital services reported in this article was conducted to determine the magnitude of shared administrative and clinical programs, what institutions participate, and most frequently shared services. To ensure that hospitals with different characteristics and in various areas were represented, the investigators mailed questionnaires to 1,731 of the nation's 5,987 short-term, acute care general hospitals in nine census regions. Responses indicated the following trends: Not-for-profit hospitals outrank other types of hospitals in using shared services. About 90 percent of hospitals with 200 to 499 beds shared services. For almost all categories of services, a percentage increase occurred in the number of hospitals participating in shared programs. The three most shared services were purchasing, data processing, and insurance programs. Hospitals shared more administrative than clinical services. According to administrators' responses, cost containment was the most common reason for sharing services. As the pressures to control health care costs increase, the investigators predict that hospitals will share more clinical services. Shared services decrease unit cost, however, only when providers have an excess capacity.