Medical Management in Norwegian Hospitals

Abstract

Hospitals are increasing in size and complexity and hospital manage-ment is being professionalized. This paper aims to investigate how doctors engage in hospital management. Are doctors losing their influence? Based on a review of existing literature and data from a longitudinal study, we show that Norwegian doctors have seemingly lost some of their previous dominance in hospital manage-ment, as other professions have entered traditional areas of medical influence. However, we argue that doctors appear to regain an influential position in formal decision making by entering positions with higher potential for influence. We suggest an analytical approach that illustrates the changing engagement of doctors in management. Our paper contributes to the current and requested research on the relationship between medicine and management in European states.