Perceptions of Managerial Competency Among Pharmacy Department Heads in Vietnamese Hospitals

Background: Health service managers, including heads of pharmacy departments, play an important role in the efficient operation of hospitals. There has been a rise in emphasis on measuring competency and performance in the healthcare sector and for health service managers in particular. Managerial competency has been investigated through a variety of approaches. The aims of study to measure managerial competency on heads of pharmacy department in hospitals in southern Vietnam. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted between April and July in 2019. Managerial competency was evaluated using a self-developed questionnaire consisting of seven domains. A cluster sampling technique was used for data collection. Microsoft Excel was used to perform descriptive statistics. Results: Leadership was the domain with the highest score (4.37 ± 0.42). Customer/patient focus (3.62 ± 0.77) had the lowest score. All domains, except customer/patient focus, achieved a Cronbach’s alpha higher than 0.7. Department heads who were over 50 years old self-rated with the highest scores. Participants who experienced official or semi-official training higher scores than those who did not. The higher the academic degree the participants had achieved, the higher the score they reported. Conclusion: Public hospital ownership and managerial training were considered to play a role in managerial competency.