Firm Performance among Level Five Hospitals in Kenya: Does Market Culture Make Any Difference?

Abstract

lower patient satisfaction. Abstract: The state of the health sector in a country determines the development of the welfare and quality of life of its citizens. The Kenyan health sector faces challenges in its work that lead to inefficient service delivery. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the effect of market culture on the performance of a Level 5 hospital in Nairobi, Kenya. The study is anchored on the Schein's theory of organizational culture and stakeholder theory. Both descriptive and explanatory research projects were used. The study targeted 20 level five hospitals in Nairobi County. All the hospitals were included in the study and therefore it was a census. The unit of observation included10 department heads from each hospital. A total of 200 respondents were expected to participate in the study. Structured questionnaire was used to obtain primary data. Pilot data was used to measure the questionnaire’s reliability. Frequencies, percentages, means, and standard deviation were used in descriptive statistical analysis. Inferential statistics were used to determine how variables were related. It consisted of correlation and regression analysis to assess the relationship between the independent and dependent variable. The findings of the correlation analysis found out that market culture had a positive and significant relationship with firm performance (r=0.604, p=0.000). Further, regression output indicated that market culture had a positive and significant effect on firm performance (β=0.492, p=0.000). Therefore, the study concluded that market culture has a substantial contribution to the performance of level 5 hospitals. The management of level five hospitals should ensure policies are streamlined to strengthen the aspects of market culture within the organization. The management should particularly promote productivity, effectiveness, and result in optimization.