The Association Between Residential Care Facility Manager's Educational Attainment and the Presence of Structural and Service Innovations.

Abstract

For many service-oriented firms, knowledge is a key commodity, and the process by which knowledge is codified is critical for firm survival. The administrator or top manager acts as the repository and disseminator of organizational knowledge. The purpose of this project is to examine the association between the administrator's educational attainment and innovation in residential care facilities. The study hypothesized that administrator academic education and certification or licensure would be positively associated with facility innovation. Data for this project comes from the 2010 National Survey of Residential Care Facilities. There were 2277 facilities included in the sample (weighted 30 811). Innovation, the dependent variable, was operationalized using 5 dichotomized measures: clinical information systems, pharmaceutical information systems, electronic health records, providing adult day care, and providing respite care. The data were analyzed using logistic regression. Overall, the results reveal that college education or certification/licensure increased the likelihood of technology use. In addition, those with a high school diploma and certification/licensure were more likely to use technology than were individuals who had, at a minimum, some college. The services models were not significant. It may be that the resources necessary to implement information systems vary substantially from the resources necessary to provide services.