Intra/Inter Organizational Coordination in Healthcare

What are the differences between intra- and inter-organizational coordination in health care organizations? What can a manager do to achieve each type of coordination?
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Hi,

Interesting questions! Let’s take a closer look through discussion and research. I also attached onr supporting article for consideration.

RESPONSE:

1. What are the differences between intra- and inter-organizational coordination in health care organizations? What can a manager do to achieve each type of coordination?

Coordination and communication deals with the essential means that a manager links together the various people and groups within the health care organization (intra), and link together the health care organization to others organizations (inter). Inter-organizational coordination includes coordination mechanism or structure put on place by the manager to coordinate interactions among public, private, and nonprofit organizations, for example (http://insna.org/Connections-Web/Volume26-2/4.Kapucu.pdf).

Managers use certain coordination mechanisms, processes and structures(e.g., centralized vs. decentralized, inclusion versus exploitation, etc.) to maintain both intra-organizational coordination (e.g. integrator roles, groups, processes, informal-relationship building, human resource practices, IT-based systems) and inter-organizational coordination (e.g. governance, information and communication technology, networks, alliances, work teams, etc.) (or not) (Shortell & Kaluzney, 1997, http://books.google.com/books?id=IwBY_kt387AC&pg=PA162&lpg=PA162&dq=intra+and+%22inter+organizational%22+coordination+healthcare&source=web&ots=iIExBREYcS&sig=TNnRX5zaOOvV1BFzhg69CA460Nw#PPA164,M1). Some are similar, while others are unique to each type of coordination.

According to Marengo (1993), for example, different organizational learning environments may favor exploitation and exploration differentially. The author claimed that centralized coordination mechanisms would favor exploitation and decentralized mechanisms would favor exploration. Comparing them to each other, intra-organizational learning and coordination processes rely to a greater extent on centralized and formal coordination than do inter-organizational learning and coordination processes.

Earlier, March (1991) …