During the recession, how should hospitals spend their money?

If this recent report is to be believed, many are spending it to upgrade their service and amenities such as upscale food, a pleasant environment, and attentive staff.

Isn’t the money better spent on, say, clinical indicators and quality measures?

Well, no. Data has shown that patients respond positively to amenities, and sadly, “from the patient perspective, hospital quality therefore embodies amenities as well as clinical quality.” In fact, such luxuries raises a hospital’s demand significantly more than clinical quality, such as mortality rates.

Until this response changes, expect more hospitals to spend more money modeling themselves after hotels.