Physician-leaders and hospital performance: Is there an association?

The central question in this thesis is whether health care professionals are more effective than general managers without medical training in leading a hospital. Earlier literature on this question is inconclusive. There are theoretical arguments in favor of both types of managers. Empirical evidence is scarce. In this thesis, I conduct an empirical cross-sectional study in the Netherlands on hospital performance and the educational background of the members of the executive board. Statistical analysis makes clear that there is no significant correlation between the quality of a hospital and the educational background of the CEO or the executive board of a hospital.