We use hospital-level discharge data from cardiac patients in California to estimate the effects of focus on operational performance. We examine focus at three distinct levels of the organization--at the firm level, at the operating unit level, and at the process flow level. We find that focus...

One key driver of improvement in surgical outcomes is a surgeon's prior experience. However, research notes that not all experience provides equal value for performance. How, then, should surgeons accumulate experience to improve quality outcomes? In this paper, we investigate the differential...

This paper explores the rationing of bed capacity in a cardiac intensive care unit (ICU). We find that the length of stay for patients admitted to the ICU is influenced by the occupancy level of the ICU. In particular, a patient is likely to be discharged early when the occupancy in the ICU is...

This paper explores the rationing of bed capacity in a cardiac intensive care unit (ICU). We find that the length of stay for patients admitted to the ICU is influenced by the occupancy level of the ICU. In particular, a patient is likely to be discharged early when the occupancy in the ICU is...

Background: Patient demand for emergency medical services continues to rise from all-time highs. ED physicians generally respond to this rising demand by increasing their level of multitasking. Aim: What leads ED physicians to select which patients, and how many patients, they will treat?...