Corporate governance is essentially the system of rules, practices, and processes established by an organization to guide how it is directed, monitored, and incentivized.
This framework aligns the interests of all stakeholders—such as shareholders, executives, and clients—ensuring transparency, fairness, accountability, and corporate responsibility, and consequently supporting the sustainability of the organization.
Although it is more commonly discussed in sectors related to finance, retail, technology, and similar industries, corporate governance is also indispensable for healthcare institutions.
Reasons to Implement Governance in the Healthcare Sector
There are numerous reasons to implement governance in the healthcare sector. However, we chose to begin with those that cannot be ignored: laws and regulations.
In Brazil, ANS Normative Resolution (RN) 518/2022 establishes mandatory practices related to corporate governance, risk management, and internal controls for health insurance operators. Therefore, if your institution intends to be accredited by any of them, it must comply with the requirements established by this normative resolution.
In Europe, these aspects are regulated by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), Resolution 2020/2137-INI, and the Quality and Safety Directives.
In the United States, requirements are extremely strict for hospitals, especially those that receive government funding. They must comply with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, Compliance Program Requirements, HIPAA, and Surgical Center Regulations.
Risk mitigation is another important reason that can motivate healthcare institutions to adopt corporate governance in practice. Risk management is an essential pillar that directly impacts patient safety, quality improvements, organizational culture, and the sustainability of the organization.
Patient safety, for example, becomes more effective when institutions adopt policies and rules that are clearly communicated and understood by everyone. In addition, the focus shifts toward improving the patient experience.
Ethics, transparency, and credibility are also key drivers, as they are prerequisites for attracting new investments, improving productivity, and increasing satisfaction among all stakeholders.
Advancements achieved through governance also encourage the adoption of international standards, support organizations in obtaining industry certifications and accreditations, and ensure the long-term sustainability of the institution.
Tips for Implementing Governance
It is important to understand that governance in the healthcare sector differs from other industries in several aspects. Healthcare is far more complex due to the variety of stakeholders involved, stricter regulations, and other specific characteristics.
For this reason, in this context the term clinical governance is often used, with the primary focus on monitoring and promoting the continuous improvement of the quality of care. Another key aspect is its social and ethical purpose, which is more strongly centered on equity.
Even so, some implementation steps are similar to those used in other organizations. Before beginning the implementation process, it is essential to analyze and understand the organization’s current situation. At this stage, strengths and vulnerabilities within the organizational structure should be considered, as well as the maturity of process management and compliance with sector laws and regulations.
To ensure that the activities required for implementation are not overlooked due to the high demands of daily operations, organizations may establish a dedicated team to manage the project. If this is not feasible, working with a specialized consultancy to help organize and implement the stages can be a viable alternative.
Once this is in place, the next step is to define the roles and responsibilities within the new corporate governance structure. This is also a good opportunity to establish a board of directors, if one does not already exist, to oversee activities and strategic decision-making.
During the preparation of necessary documents—such as the Code of Ethics and Compliance Policies—it is important to consider the specific characteristics of the healthcare sector and the organization itself. Once finalized, these documents should be easily accessible to all stakeholders, and training sessions should be conducted to ensure that new employees are aligned from the very beginning.
After implementation, control mechanisms and performance indicators should be used to evaluate its effectiveness. Strategies that include internal and external audits are among the best options for ensuring continuous compliance, particularly in hospital environments that require closer monitoring.
Without a doubt, technological tools are the foundation of efficient governance, and the healthcare sector is no exception. However, the chosen solution should simplify daily operations rather than create additional demands that generate friction in the experience of both users and employees. Therefore, it is important to choose technologies that can easily integrate with existing specialized systems.
These aspects not only improve governance efficiency but also directly enhance transparency.
Finally, just as in healthcare quality management, the key to high-level governance is stakeholder engagement—both in adopting best practices and in promoting them throughout the organization. This engagement helps strengthen an organizational culture aligned with the institution’s strategic objectives.
Align Strategy and Operations with Interact Suite
One of the main challenges in implementing governance in healthcare institutions is the lack of alignment between strategic and operational levels. Transforming strategic planning into real execution can face obstacles such as the lack of goal deployment, the absence of structured monitoring, among other factors.
However, Interact Suite solutions facilitate this integration, ensuring that strategic plans reach clinical and operational areas in a simple and practical way.
Interact Governance, for example, is a key solution for implementing corporate governance and is used by clients across different industries. With it, your organization benefits from Management 4.0, offering an integrated view of corporate results through strategic maps, strategic objectives, and key performance indicators.
Its features ensure the monitoring of all business perspectives, enabling better performance, consistent results, and the achievement of strategic objectives.
The GRC – Governance, Risk, and Compliance solution is also an alternative for institutions that seek to significantly transform the development of organizational culture, sustainability, and business strengthening.
In addition to offering advanced technology and a high level of corporate governance, it is aligned with globally recognized models and methodologies such as ISO 9000, ISO 31000, PMBOK, SOX, the Basel Committee, Australian Standard AS 3806, LEC, and the Office of the Comptroller General of Brazil (CGU).
