Adding Value by Health Care Real Estate: Parameters and Priorities

Purpose Due to the transition of the Dutch health care sector from a governmentally steered domain towards regulated market forces, health care organisations have become fully responsible for their real estate. This paper explores if/how Dutch health care organisations adopt the concept of adding value by corporate and public real estate, which value parameters are included in daily practice and how, and which values are prioritized. Methodology Literature study and interviews with CEOs, project leaders, real estate managers and facility managers working in Dutch hospitals, assisted living facilities for the elderly, and mental health care facilities. The interviews were jointly prepared by students and the author of this paper being their main supervisor. Findings End-user satisfaction, stimulating innovation and increasing productivity are highly prioritized. The operationalisation into concrete design choices and strategic management of buildings-in-use is still underdeveloped. Which values are prioritized depends on the organisational objectives, the target group, the available budget, and the external context, in particular governmental policy and competition with other health care suppliers. Research implications Although much work has been done to operationalise the added value of corporate real estate and building related facilities, there is still a lack of a widely agreed taxonomy of added values and how to measure and manage these values. Ongoing international collaboration between researchers and practitioners is needed to build a common framework and to develop standardised measurement methods. Practical implications The insights can support decision makers in how to add value by public and corporate real estate, to explore conflicting values, and to improve current corporate and public real estate management by incorporating adding value parameters and taking into account the needs and interests of different stakeholders. Social implications A clear insight in value adding management of corporate real estate may result in a better fit between real estate and organisational objectives and individual needs. Originality/value The findings link added value theory to Corporate Real Estate Management in Dutch health care practice