Healthcare Management: Progress, problems and solutions : Introduction

Healthcare managers face many challenges in delivering quality healthcare. Numerous OECD countries face a challenge in retaining healthcare professionals - particularly doctors and nurses. In the case of Australia, the nurse shortage is equivalent to 3% of the practicing registered nurses, which is approximately 10,000 nurses, just to meet present demand. The situation is similar for medical practitioners. This predicament is exacerbated by the aging population and the high percentage of older healthcare professionals working in the system. Additionally, past research has identified that healthcare professionals reporting dissatisfaction with management policies and practices have a 65% higher probability of leaving than those reporting satisfaction, plus the retention of skilled employees is a key factor affecting organisational effectiveness. This special issue of the Journal of Management & Organization on healthcare management was initiated to explore the current progress, problems and solutions that healthcare and aged care organizations grapple with in several parts of the globe. The research has been conducted in a variety of locations including Australia, South Korea, United Kingdom, and Taiwan, and examines both public and private health care sectors