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2 - The context of managerial mistakes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 October 2009

By
John Abbott Worthley
Edited by
Paul B. Hofmann  and
Frankie Perry
Foreword by
Richard J. Davidson
John Abbott Worthley
Affiliation:
International consultant and Professor of Public Management
Frankie Perry
Affiliation:
University of New Mexico
Richard J. Davidson
Affiliation:
American Hospital Association
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Summary

Despite our best efforts and self-image of high competence, we do all make mistakes. At executive levels in healthcare this reality is no less true than it is in business, in academia, in church organizations, or in the military. The CEO of American Airlines and many others in business, the president of St. Bonaventure University, numerous Catholic bishops, and the heads of both the Air Force and Naval Academies have been visible examples in 2003 alone. Recent indictments of healthcare executives with the Tenet Corporation and other healthcare institutions are receiving considerable notoriety as well (Abelson 2003).

To better understand the reality and position ourselves to turn the phenomenon of mistakes in a managerially helpful direction, some illumination of the context in which management mistakes unfold is important. This chapter is designed to do just that. Some of the context is generic – common to all organizational settings; some of the context is specific to healthcare entities. For conceptual clarity we explore the context by distinguishing eight major aspects: legal, organizational, financial, political, professional, ethical, social and psychological.

Legal dimensions

Probably the most obvious dimension of the context of managerial mistakes is the legal aspect. It is rather visible, and mistakes in this area can have serious consequences for the individual executive and for the corporation. Prison time and significant fines, as well as negative publicity and reduced market performance, are part of the reality.

Type
Chapter
Information
Management Mistakes in Healthcare
Identification, Correction, and Prevention
 , pp. 28 - 39
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2004

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References

Abelson, R., 2003. “Chief of tenet owned hospital is indicted.” The New York Times June 7: C2Google Scholar
Gunn, J., Goldfarb, E., and Showalter, J., 1998. “Creating a corporate compliance program.” Health Progress 79(3): 62–63Google ScholarPubMed
Kelly, C. M., 1988. The Destructive Achiever: Power and Ethics in the American Corporation. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley
Petry, E., Mujica, A., and Vickery, D., 1998. “Sources and consequences of workplace pressure.” Business and Society Review 99(1): 25CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schminke, M., Ambrose, M., and Noel, T., 1997. “The effect of ethical frameworks on perceptions of organizational justice.”Academy of Management Journal 40(5): 1190–2007Google Scholar
Worthley, J. A., 1997. The Ethics of the Ordinary in Healthcare: Concepts and Cases. Chicago: Health Administration Press: 111–146
Worthley, J. A., 1999. Organizational Ethics in the Compliance Context. Chicago: Health Administration Press

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