Knowledge Characteristics, Implementation Measures, and Performance in Taiwan Hospital Organization

Like other knowledge-intensive industries operating in a highly challenging business environment, hospitals of all sizes must view the creation, organization, distribution, and application of knowledge as a critical aspect of their management activities. From the point of view of knowledge management, the fundamental mission of hospital management is to deliver quality medical services using highly specialized knowledge to solve health care problems within various resource constraints. This study examines the correlation and causal relationships among knowledge characteristics, knowledge acquisition strategies, implementation measures, and performance of knowledge management implements. Based on primary survey data collected in Taiwan, this study shows that the characteristics of knowledge affect the ways in which knowledge management is implemented, and that the implementation measures, in turn, have a significant impact on the results of knowledge management implementation.