Investigation of the implementation of hospital knowledge management in China

Objective To find out the level of understanding of hospital staff concerning knowledge management, in order to provide a basis for the implementation of knowledge management in hospitals. Method A questionnaire designed to assess understanding of the implementation state of hospital knowledge management. Participants were 411 management personnel from different grade hospitals nationwide chosen to take part in the questionnaire. Result The overall understanding of hospital staff about hospital knowledge management is very low. The understanding of staff from different grades of hospitals is different (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). There are also differences between employees of different gender, different age, different educational background, different professional titles and specialized fields (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). However, all of them are keen to develop knowledge management across hospitals. Conclusion The understanding of hospital staff concerning knowledge management is at a low level. The hospital manager should renew their commitment to knowledge management. Hospital employees should make much more effort to study the theory of knowledge management, and place their education standard on a sounder footing, in order to promote the progress of hospital knowledge management.