Conundrum of bureaucratic processes and healthcare service delivery in government hospitals in Nigeria
Purpose – Bureaucracy to a large extent entrenches orderliness and productive means of achieving goals in both public and private organisations across the world. However, bureaucracy is not suitable in the management of hospitals due to its peculiar nature of operations. This study investigates the...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Emerald Publishing
2020-05-01
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| Series: | Journal of Humanities and Applied Social Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/JHASS-12-2019-0081/full/pdf?title=conundrum-of-bureaucratic-processes-and-healthcare-service-delivery-in-government-hospitals-in-nigeria |
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| author | Owolabi Lateef Kuye Olusegun Emmanuel Akinwale |
| author_facet | Owolabi Lateef Kuye Olusegun Emmanuel Akinwale |
| author_sort | Owolabi Lateef Kuye |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Purpose – Bureaucracy to a large extent entrenches orderliness and productive means of achieving goals in both public and private organisations across the world. However, bureaucracy is not suitable in the management of hospitals due to its peculiar nature of operations. This study investigates the conundrum of bureaucratic processes and health-care service delivery in government hospitals in Nigeria. Design/methodology/approach – The study surveyed 600 outpatients and attendees visiting tertiary and government hospitals in Nigeria using descriptive design to obtained data from the respondents. A research instrument, questionnaire, was used to gather data. Out of the 600 outpatients visiting the 20 hospitals in government and tertiary hospitals, 494 responses were returned from the attendees. The study employed random sampling strategy to collect the information. Findings – The findings of this study were that service delivery in government hospitals were in adverse position on all the four constructs of bureaucratic dimensions as against quality of service delivery in hospitals in Nigeria. It discovered that bureaucratic impersonality cannot impact on the quality of service delivery in government hospitals in Nigeria. Separation and division of labour among health workers have no significant effect on quality service delivery in government hospitals. Formal rules and regulations (administrative procedure, rules, and policies) prevent quality service delivery in government hospitals in Nigeria. Also, patient’s waiting time was not significant to the quality of service delivery in government hospitals. Research limitations/implications – The results are constrained with dimensions of bureaucratic processes. Thus, the implication of this study is that bureaucracy in the Nigerian public hospitals is an unnecessary marriage which should be carefully separated and de-emphasised for quality service delivery in the hospitals to thrive. Practical implications – Largely, this study is practical essential as it unearths the irrelevant operations procedure that hinder progress in Nigerian hospitals. Originality/value – The study accomplishes recognised importance to survey how bureaucracy impedes quality service delivery in government hospitals. This study has provided a vital clue to elements that will bring rapid attention to patients’outcome in Nigerian hospitals and health-care facilities which hitherto has not been emphasised. The study has contributed to the existing body of knowledge associated to healthcare service quality in developing country. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-10T03:37:27Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-5b4444b6fd9449ed8e2137ee2d7a2dcc |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2632-279X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-10T03:37:27Z |
| publishDate | 2020-05-01 |
| publisher | Emerald Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Humanities and Applied Social Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-5b4444b6fd9449ed8e2137ee2d7a2dcc2022-12-22T02:03:41ZengEmerald PublishingJournal of Humanities and Applied Social Sciences2632-279X2020-05-0131254810.1108/JHASS-12-2019-0081644697Conundrum of bureaucratic processes and healthcare service delivery in government hospitals in NigeriaOwolabi Lateef Kuye0Olusegun Emmanuel Akinwale1Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Management Sciences, University of Lagos, Lagos, NigeriaDepartment of Business Administration, Faculty of Management Sciences, University of Lagos, Lagos, NigeriaPurpose – Bureaucracy to a large extent entrenches orderliness and productive means of achieving goals in both public and private organisations across the world. However, bureaucracy is not suitable in the management of hospitals due to its peculiar nature of operations. This study investigates the conundrum of bureaucratic processes and health-care service delivery in government hospitals in Nigeria. Design/methodology/approach – The study surveyed 600 outpatients and attendees visiting tertiary and government hospitals in Nigeria using descriptive design to obtained data from the respondents. A research instrument, questionnaire, was used to gather data. Out of the 600 outpatients visiting the 20 hospitals in government and tertiary hospitals, 494 responses were returned from the attendees. The study employed random sampling strategy to collect the information. Findings – The findings of this study were that service delivery in government hospitals were in adverse position on all the four constructs of bureaucratic dimensions as against quality of service delivery in hospitals in Nigeria. It discovered that bureaucratic impersonality cannot impact on the quality of service delivery in government hospitals in Nigeria. Separation and division of labour among health workers have no significant effect on quality service delivery in government hospitals. Formal rules and regulations (administrative procedure, rules, and policies) prevent quality service delivery in government hospitals in Nigeria. Also, patient’s waiting time was not significant to the quality of service delivery in government hospitals. Research limitations/implications – The results are constrained with dimensions of bureaucratic processes. Thus, the implication of this study is that bureaucracy in the Nigerian public hospitals is an unnecessary marriage which should be carefully separated and de-emphasised for quality service delivery in the hospitals to thrive. Practical implications – Largely, this study is practical essential as it unearths the irrelevant operations procedure that hinder progress in Nigerian hospitals. Originality/value – The study accomplishes recognised importance to survey how bureaucracy impedes quality service delivery in government hospitals. This study has provided a vital clue to elements that will bring rapid attention to patients’outcome in Nigerian hospitals and health-care facilities which hitherto has not been emphasised. The study has contributed to the existing body of knowledge associated to healthcare service quality in developing country.https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/JHASS-12-2019-0081/full/pdf?title=conundrum-of-bureaucratic-processes-and-healthcare-service-delivery-in-government-hospitals-in-nigeriabureaucracypatients’ waiting timeimpersonalitydivision of labouradministrative rules and policieshealth-care service qualitynigeria |
| spellingShingle | Owolabi Lateef Kuye Olusegun Emmanuel Akinwale Conundrum of bureaucratic processes and healthcare service delivery in government hospitals in Nigeria Journal of Humanities and Applied Social Sciences bureaucracy patients’ waiting time impersonality division of labour administrative rules and policies health-care service quality nigeria |
| title | Conundrum of bureaucratic processes and healthcare service delivery in government hospitals in Nigeria |
| title_full | Conundrum of bureaucratic processes and healthcare service delivery in government hospitals in Nigeria |
| title_fullStr | Conundrum of bureaucratic processes and healthcare service delivery in government hospitals in Nigeria |
| title_full_unstemmed | Conundrum of bureaucratic processes and healthcare service delivery in government hospitals in Nigeria |
| title_short | Conundrum of bureaucratic processes and healthcare service delivery in government hospitals in Nigeria |
| title_sort | conundrum of bureaucratic processes and healthcare service delivery in government hospitals in nigeria |
| topic | bureaucracy patients’ waiting time impersonality division of labour administrative rules and policies health-care service quality nigeria |
| url | https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/JHASS-12-2019-0081/full/pdf?title=conundrum-of-bureaucratic-processes-and-healthcare-service-delivery-in-government-hospitals-in-nigeria |
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