Implementation of Knowledge Management in Chinese Hospitals

• Published in: Current medical science Vol. 38; no. 2; pp. 372 - 378
• Main Authors: Yan, Qiao-yuan, Xiang, Fei, Shi, Xiao-xu, Zhu, Qin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Wuhan Huazhong University of Science and Technology 01.04.2018; Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430022, China%School of Medicine and Health Management, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology,Wuhan 430030, China%School of Nursing, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430030, China
• Subjects: Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; knowledge management; hospital knowledge management; implementation
• ISSN: 2096-5230; 2523-899X; 1672-0733; 2523-899X
• DOI: 10.1007/s11596-018-1888-z

Summary The implementation of knowledge management (KM) in hospitals affects efficiency and outcomes of hospitals. However, few studies explored the implementation of KM in China. Twenty-two questions were designed concerning KM implementation status in over 50 hospitals. In order to understand the KM level and attitude to KM of the hospital’s managers, a random sampling survey was conducted among 138 managers from 50 different scales of hospitals in 15 provinces of China. The survey showed that overall level of KM implementation in Chinese hospitals was still low and differed among different scales of hospitals ( P <0.05, or P <0.01). In all the hospitals investigated, 63.8% did not implement KM yet, among which 46% even had not planned for that. 49.8% of the hospitals investigated had no training program about KM ever and the main source of hospital staff to get knowledge was internet. It suggested that hospital managers should make much more efforts to get to know and understand theories on KM, so that hospital KM could be promoted more rapidly.