Aim
To obtain insight into how clinicians in Norwegian health services experience the impact of governing instruments on their ability to provide quality care to their patients.
Material and Methods
Postal questionnaire to a representative sample of doctors practicing in Norway in 2016 which sought to identify how steering measures impact on clinical decisions and priority setting. Data analyzed by descriptive statistics.
Results
The response rate was 75% (1158 of 1545). The doctors reported that budgets constraints, legal regulations, clinical guidelines and contracts have direct impact on clinical decision making, among which budgets/capacity seems to be the most important to limit care. Patients with psychiatric disease are reported as those who suffer the most from such constraints, followed by patients with comorbidity, addiction, or old age.
Discussion
We discuss how different governing instruments coexist and may produce role conflicts and how these potentially incompatible instruments impact on doctors’ clinical decisions. We also discuss whether the doctors believe these instruments contribute to fulfilling the goals of quality and equity.