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Managing managed care: the enabling role of IS/IT
Nilmini Wickramasinghe1, Roberta Lamb
1Computer and Information Sciences, James J. Nance College of Business Administration, Cleveland State University, Ohio, USA.
Journal of Management in Medicine
|September 5, 2002
Summary
Agency theory, originally for financial relationships, is extended to knowledge workers (KW). Information systems/technology (IS/IT) facilitate KW self-monitoring, improving principal-KW relationships in healthcare.
Area of Science:
- Management Science
- Information Systems
- Healthcare Management
Background:
- Traditional agency theory by Jensen and Meckling did not encompass knowledge workers (KW).
- The principal/agent relationship dynamics are complex, especially with specialized knowledge.
- Information Systems/Technology (IS/IT) are increasingly integrated into professional workflows.
Purpose of the Study:
- To extend agency theory to the principal/knowledge worker (KW) agent context.
- To investigate the role of IS/IT in monitoring KW agents.
- To explore IS/IT's potential for enabling KW self-monitoring.
Main Methods:
- Investigated the principal-KW agent relationship dynamics within the healthcare industry.
- Qualitative or quantitative analysis of IS/IT's impact on monitoring and self-monitoring.
- Case study or empirical examination of specific healthcare scenarios.
Main Results:
- IS/IT plays a crucial role in facilitating the monitoring of KW agents.
- IS/IT enables knowledge workers to perform "self-monitoring", going beyond simple problem alleviation.
- The findings highlight the transformative potential of IS/IT in managing agency relationships with KWs.
Conclusions:
- Agency theory can be effectively extended to understand principal-KW relationships.
- IS/IT is instrumental in both external monitoring and fostering internal self-monitoring among KWs.
- The study offers significant implications for healthcare management, agency theory, and IS/IT adoption with knowledge workers.