Procurement physiognomies and creative accounting in Nigerian listed health care firms

Purpose This paper aims to examine the influence of procurement physiognomies on the creative accounting (CA) of listed health-care firms in Nigeria from 2016 to 2020. Design/methodology/approach This paper used positivist paradigm. Annual reports and accounts, questionnaire and e-mails were used to obtained and extract quantitative data. The data were analyzed using OLS regression. Findings The study found that, procurement planning, e-procurement and procurement legislation compliance possessed negative weighty consequence on CA of quoted Nigerian health-care corporations while outsourcing, procurement staff competency and strategic supplier partnership possess positive substantial impact on the firms’ CA. The article concluded that procurement physiognomies play an important role in managing CA of health-care firms. Research limitations/implications This study findings are only applicable to listed health-care firms in Nigeria. It only used six procurement attributes. The research implication is that researchers are to use the findings in conducting further studies on procurement physiognomies and CA to help in coming up with ways of curbing irregularities in the organizations. Practical implications The health-care firms are to use the findings to come up with policies that ensure malpractices in procurement are curbed and CA is minimized to its barest level. Its societal implication is that the public is to use the findings in changing societal attitudes toward earnings manipulation. Social implications Its societal implication is that the public is to use the findings in changing societal attitudes toward earnings manipulation. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this article is the first to evaluate the influence of procurement physiognomies on CA in Nigerian-listed health-care companies. Many researchers neglect how procurement is used to carry out a lot of CA and this study focuses on a mechanism for curtailing corruption.