Abstract
This article examines the investment of patient care information technology (IT) systems by a nationwide sample of U.S. short-term acute care hospitals and the resulting impact these systems have in the productivity of institutions from 1990-1998. Of particular interest is the extent to which for-profit and not-for-profit hospitals obtain different results from the adoption of IT systems. We find that the marginal effect of IT on for-profit hospital productivity is to reduce the number of days supplied, while in not-for-profit hospitals the marginal effect of IT is to increase the quantity of services supplied. This resulting effect is consistent with the differing objectives of not-for-profit and for-profit hospitals and demonstrates the positive marginal value of IT as a sustainable and prudent investment.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 31-43 |
| Number of pages | 13 |
| Journal | Health Care Financing Review |
| Volume | 28 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| State | Published - Dec 2007 |