Using the balanced scorecard to measure Chinese and Japanese hospital performance.

Purpose: The objective of the paper is to confirm the feasibility and value of using the balanced scorecard (BSC) to measure performance in two hospitals in different countries.

Design/methodology/approach: One hospital from China and another from Japan were chosen and key indicators were selected according to the BSC framework. A comparative hospital performance measurement model was set up using the BSC framework to comprehensively compare hospital performance in two countries.

Findings: The BSC was found to be effective for underlining existing problems and identifying opportunities for improvements. The BSC also revealed the hospitals' contribution to performance improvement of each country's total health system.

Research limitations/implications: Hospital performance comparisons between countries using the BSC depend on the selection of feasible and appropriate key performance indicators, which is occasionally limited by data collection problems.

Originality/value: The first use of the BSC to compare hospital performance between China and Japan shows benefits that not only suggests performance improvements in individual hospitals but also reveals effective health factors allowing implementation of valid national health policies.