Key Risks and Mitigation Strategies in Enterprise Risk Management for Private Hospitals: A Mixed-Method Study

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Risk Management
• Hospital Operations

Background:

• Enterprise risk management (ERM) is crucial for the sustainability and operational resilience of private hospitals in Thailand.
• Identifying and mitigating key risks is essential for strengthening the healthcare sector's resilience.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically identify and prioritize critical enterprise risks in Thai private hospitals.
• To propose effective mitigation strategies for enhancing healthcare resilience and sustainability.

Main Methods:

• A 4-phase mixed-methods approach including risk inventory development, quantitative surveys, expert interviews, and bibliometric analysis.
• Risk inventory based on global ERM frameworks and hospital reports; survey of 48 risk/quality professionals; interviews with 5 ERM experts; bibliometric analysis of 958 Scopus articles.
• Content validity assessed via Index of Item-Objective Congruence (IOC); bibliometric analysis refined the conceptual framework.

Main Results:

• The 5 highest-ranked enterprise risks identified are: clinical and patient safety, sentinel events, medical personnel shortages, cybersecurity threats, and litigation exposure.
• Key contributing factors include ineffective clinical systems, communication issues, staff turnover, low compensation, and inadequate cybersecurity literacy.
• Recommended strategies encompass proactive risk assessment, workforce planning, safety culture development, ISO/IEC 27001 compliance, and improved patient communication.

Conclusions:

• A structured ERM framework highlights patient safety, sentinel events, staff shortages, cybersecurity, and litigation as paramount risks.
• Recommendations focus on enhancing clinical governance, workforce policies, cybersecurity, legal risk management, and total quality management.
• Implementing these strategies will bolster healthcare resilience and sustainability in Thailand's private hospital sector.