Outsourcing in Turkish Hospitals: A Systematic Review

Outsourcing has become a basis strategy in the public hospitals and has recently grown considerably in popularity. The impetus for this trend was the initiated by the Ministry of Health in Turkey with the fact that private sector pressures and competition would make public sector more efficient. The aim of the study is to compare and integrate different research findings carried out on outsourcing services in the hospitals in Turkey through a systematic review and to make suggestions for future researches. A total of 15 studies (8 dissertations and 7 articles) published between the years 2005 and 2011 were identified for inclusion in the present review. According to the results of these studies, outsourcing have decreased the costs, increased the productivity and the quality of services. In only one study the effect of outsourcing services was examined based on the hospital cost records. In another study the satisfaction level of hospital staff was found low. According to the results, it can be stated that there is a need some empirical research that will determine the effect of outsourcing services based on the indicators of objective quality, productivity and costs, in public and private hospitals in Turkey.