Managerial performance and cost efficiency of Japanese local public hospitals: A latent class stochastic frontier model
研究了1999-2007年617家日本地方公立医院的管理绩效与成本效率关系，发现更好的管理绩效与更高的成本效率相关，为提升医院管理质量提供了依据。
The paper explores the link between managerial performance and cost efficiency of 617 Japanese general local public hospitals in 1999-2007. Treating managerial performance as unobservable heterogeneity, the paper employs a panel data stochastic cost frontier model with latent classes. Financial parameters associated with better managerial performance are found to be positively significant in explaining the probability of belonging to the more efficient latent class. The analysis of latent class membership was consistent with the conjecture that unobservable technological heterogeneity reflected in the existence of the latent classes is related to managerial performance. The findings may support the cause for raising efficiency of Japanese local public hospitals by enhancing the quality of management.