Accounting as an instrument of power: The case of an Italian hospital in the late nineteenth century

Abstract

During the past few years, scholars have investigated accounting practices from different perspectives and in different contexts; however, the topics of accounting and fraud-corruption appear to be underresearched areas in accounting history literature. This article examines the case of Galliera Hospital of Genoa, established as Opera Pia De Ferrari Brignole Sale in 1877 by the Duchess Maria Brignole Sale. Currently, the Galliera Hospital is an important and specialised Italian hospital with 450 beds and almost 2,000 employees. Using the lens of Foucault’s governmentality and discipline power framework, this article explores how unforeseen events and misconduct can deeply change governance and control mechanisms, implying the adoption of empowered accounting practices. Thus, this article shows that accounting practices, when perceived as a real technology of government, allow the exercise of power. The study offers a relevant contribution to the extant accounting history literature by examining how accounting can be used as an instrument of power in the presence of misconduct.