Structural holes in hospital organisations

Purpose – The delivery of high quality healthcare services to the community requires the integration of information from a wide range of sources within a complex and highly dynamic environment. Using structural holes theory the challenges and opportunities of integration are explored from a facilities management (FM) perspective. Design/methodology/approach – Using a critical realism methodology, structured interviews with hospital stakeholders are undertaken in a case study of a large tertiary hospital in Australia. Data are analysed using social network analysis to explore the existence of structural holes. Findings – Effective FM in the health sector requires intrapreneurial skills to broker connections between functionally and culturally distinct actors located in a highly disconnected communication network structure. Originality/value – This research reveals, for the first time, the detailed communication structure of relationships among FM services in a hospital. By identifying the existence of stru...

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