Evidence-based health care management: what is the research evidence available for health care managers?

Abstract

In light of increasing interest in evidence-based management, we conducted a scoping review of systematic reviews (SRs) and meta-analyses (MAs) to determine the availability and accessibility of evidence for health care managers; 14 MAs and 61 SRs met the inclusion criteria. Most reviews appeared in medical journals (53%), originated in the United States (29%) or United Kingdom (22%), were hospital-based (55%), and targeted clinical providers (55%). Topics included health services organization (34%), quality/patient safety (17%), information technology (15%), organization/workplace management (13%), and health care workforce (12%). Most reviews addressed clinical topics of relevance to managers; management-related interventions were rare. The management issues were mostly classified as operational (65%). Surprisingly, 96.5% of search results were not on target. A better classification within PubMed is needed to increase the accessibility of meaningful resources and facilitate evidence retrieval. Health care journals should take initiatives encouraging the publication of reviews in relevant management areas.

Keywords: evidence-based management; health care management; health care managers; health care organizations; meta-analysis; scoping review; systematic review.