The critical managerial capabilities of medical and nursing managers in an Israeli hospital

Purpose - – The purpose of this paper is to determine the managerial capabilities that are required of medical and nursing managers, in a Christian-affiliated hospital in Israel, in order to promote the job satisfaction of their subordinates. Design/methodology/approach - – Data were gathered via questionnaires, administered to 107 doctors and nurses of a small Christian-affiliated hospital in Israel, regarding the job satisfaction of the respondents, and their evaluation of the managerial capabilities of their medical and nursing superiors. Correlations and regressions were carried out on the data. Findings - – Overall managerial capabilities of medical and nursing managers were shown to be significantly related to how their subordinates felt about their teams and about their work. The results suggest differences between nurses and doctors. When analyzed for the two dimensions of managerial capabilities and the two dimensions of job satisfaction, the results were significant for the nurses, but not significant for the doctors. When tested for Christians vs non-Christians, the results for the nurses were the same as in the sample as a whole; whereas for the doctors, there were differences between the two religious groups. Research limitations/implications - – The sample is small and culturally specific, thus limiting the generalization potential of this study. Practical implications - – Findings of this research may have practical implications regarding hospitals’ recruitment, promotion, instruction and follow-up policies. Originality/value - – This study sheds light on the issue of hospital management and leadership within a specific cultural-religious setting, which has not been previously investigated.