• Korea Journal of Hospital Management
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.85-105
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• 1999

The main purpose of this article is to analyze the managerial performance of small and medium-size hospitals that are specialized in certain areas of medical services. Data of 189 hospitals were obtained from the data file of Korea Institute of Health Services Management The items include general characteristics of the hospitals, fianancial reports, and utilization records. Degree of specialization is measured by concentration(Herfindahl) index, and the sample hospitals are accordingly classified into specialized and unspecialized groups, by means of cluster analysis. These groups are compared in terms of various measures of managerial performance, which include several profitability indices such as operating margin, return on assets(ROA), and return on equity(ROE). To examine the relationship between specialization and managerial performance, we estimate the regression model, where the profitability indices are used as the dependent variables and the concentration index as the independent variable, controlling for the hospital characteristics such as size, type and location. Also, we perform 'Du Pont' analysis, to investigate the basic elements that can explain the differences in profitability between specialized and unspecialized hospitals. Major findings are as follows: 1. Managerial performance is better for the specilized hospitals than the unspecilized, in all aspects of profitability(operating margin, ROA, ROE). 2. Regression analysis suggests that there is a positive, statistically significant relationship beween the degree of specialization(i.e. concentration) and hospital profitability. 3. Main reason for the higher profitability of specialized hospitals lies in lower expenses rather than higher revenue. 4. In particular, personnel and material expenses are significantly smaller for the specialized hospitals, and this result seems to stem from the efficiency of operating fewer lines of business.(some kind of 'economies of scale') 5. Specialized hospitals also have fewer employees compared with the unspecialized, especially in administrative departments, which implies their efficient personnel management.

• Journal of Legislation Research
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• no.53
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• pp.375-418
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• 2017

Recently, a specialized hospital designation system has been introduced. In this regard, it is a question of whether a hospital can be searched by using the term 'specialized hospital' or 'specialized' in Internet online search. In this paper, it was examined whether there is a possibility that the medical institution might be mistaken as a specialized hospital designated by the Ministry of Health and Welfare when the concept of 'specialized hospital' or 'specialized' was used in advertisements. The name specialized hospitals can basically have three general meaning. So, if there is a possibility of confusion or misunderstanding in connection with this general meaning, it may be false advertising. The use of concepts other than these general meanings in law does not mean that general meaning disappears from consumer perception. Therefore, although the concept of a specialized hospital in the medical service act is defined in a special sense, the meaning of the specialized hospital should also be considered according to general recognition. In conclusion, the "Guideline for Specialized Hospital Advertising" prepared by the Ministry of Health and Welfare shows that the establishment of a wide range of prohibition limits the freedom of expression of medical institutions. In addition, the comprehensive prohibition of search terms such as 'specialized', and 'advanced' prevents consumers from freely searching for medical institutions with expertise. These guidelines, which are being deprived of the opportunity for professional medical institutions to advertise themselves appropriately, must be thoroughly reviewed.