Publisher's Synopsis
This research was driven by an absence of detailed studies on the use of accounting information in public sector management in Ireland. Accounting has played a substantial role in the embedding of New Public Management ideas in other countries.
Accounting in Irish Hospitals: Contradictions and Tensions explores the developments in accounting that have/have not coincided with changes in management practices in four Irish hospitals, situated across two former Health Board areas.
In the Irish context, this book considers:
How weak financial support systems have impeded the implementation of New Public Management ideas in these hospitals
Why accounting information systems are still preoccupied with a concern for stewardship that permeated the private sector 30 years ago
That although private sector accounting practices have been developed to facilitate changes in management in that sector, accounting in these hospitals and health boards has not
developed to support attempts at improved resource management
This text also looks at the major deficits of these accounting systems and recommends key changes to facilitate and support ongoing changes in management practices in Irish hospitals.
