This study describes the management competencies deemed essential for current and future practitioners of operating room (OR) administration. Since virtually no prior research studies existed, the objectives of this study were: (1) to determine the importance of certain management competencies (knowledge and skills); (2) to determine if responses were affected by organizational structure, educational level, hospital size, years of administrative experience, age, or academic preparation; and (3) to gain a demographic profile of the population.

Studies concerning essential competencies for OR administration in hospitals were non-existent. Rapid changes in technology and systems of economic reward helped demonstrate the need for middle managers with a high degree of management competencies.

One hundred hospitals in the U.S. were randomly selected and a questionnaire was mailed to the OR administrator and the direct supervisor of that administrator for each of the hospitals. Participants were asked to rate the importance of 68 task items related to 10 job dimensions that had been judged by a panel of experts to be important for competent OR administration. Respondents also completed questionnaire items of a demographic nature.

Examination of the data revealed that differences in responses of the two groups were not significant (p => .05). Significant differences in responses based on age, size of hospital, hierarchical rank, educational level, and years of administrative experience were noted.

The study supports the following conclusions: (1) Both OR administrators and their supervisors perceive tasks included in this study to be of medium to high importance; (2) Respondents rate tasks associated with operations, financial management, human resources management, information systems and data analysis, educational development, and program review, of greater importance than tasks associated with policy formulation, public and community activities, health industry activities, and legal issues and government related activities; and (3) Age of administrator, hospital size, hierarchical rank, educational level, and years of administrative experience are related to ratings on the importance of the task items.