Online sustainability disclosure by Spanish hospitals: an institutionalist approach

Abstract

PurposeThis paper examines the level of sustainability disclosures provided by Spanish hospitals using exclusively the information revealed in their institutional websites. Based on different levels of disclosure, the authors try to find the possible reasons why some Spanish hospitals reveal more sustainability information than others.Design/methodology/approachTo achieve this goal, the authors conducted a content analysis of the official websites of all Spanish hospitals identified by the Ministry of Health, Social Services and Equality.FindingsThe results reveal that Spanish hospitals seem to use sustainability disclosures for different legitimizing purposes. In general, the results indicate that Spanish hospitals may be driven by symbolic rather than substantive actions to achieve legitimacy from stakeholders.Originality/valueDue to the lack of empirical research on the hospital sector, more research is required to improve understanding of why hospitals disclose sustainability information or not.

Intellectual capital disclosure and its determinants in healthcare organisations – Evidence from Italy

“…Such pressures have increased following the growing costs, not least due to the COVID-19 pandemic. For these reasons, in the healthcare context, it is crucial to address correctly and balance the expectations and informational needs of HCOs' multiple stakeholders (Aribi et al, 2018;Andrades-Peña et al, 2021). The most common method to discharge accountability to stakeholders is through traditional accounting tools such as Intellectual capital disclosure in Italian HCOs annual reports (Schneider and Samkin, 2008).…”

“…The relevance gained by the IC in the HCOs context has progressively triggered greater demand for information by citizens and stakeholders about how HCOs effectively manage IC resources to create public value (Pirozzi and Ferulano, 2016;Andrades-Peña et al, 2021). Being Public Sector Organisations (PSOs), HCOs are under massive scrutiny from the public audience to demonstrate accountability for using public resources and performance achieved (Ram ırez et al, 2022;Andrades-Peña et al, 2021).…”

“…The relevance gained by the IC in the HCOs context has progressively triggered greater demand for information by citizens and stakeholders about how HCOs effectively manage IC resources to create public value (Pirozzi and Ferulano, 2016;Andrades-Peña et al, 2021). Being Public Sector Organisations (PSOs), HCOs are under massive scrutiny from the public audience to demonstrate accountability for using public resources and performance achieved (Ram ırez et al, 2022;Andrades-Peña et al, 2021). Therefore, since IC represents both the input and output of their processes (Vagnoni and Oppi, 2015), according to stakeholder theory, HCOs need to incorporate IC information within their reporting systems to provide stakeholders with a comprehensive understanding of their objectives and performance (Pirozzi and Ferulano, 2016;Manes-Rossi et al, 2020).…”

“…The relevance gained by the IC in the HCOs context has progressively triggered greater demand for information by citizens and stakeholders about how HCOs effectively manage IC resources to create public value (Pirozzi and Ferulano, 2016; Andrades-Peña et al. , 2021).…”

“…Being Public Sector Organisations (PSOs), HCOs are under massive scrutiny from the public audience to demonstrate accountability for using public resources and performance achieved (Ramírez et al. , 2022; Andrades-Peña et al. , 2021).…”