ABSTRACTThis research work on A Comparative Study of Expenditure Controls method in Government and private Hospitals is aimed at studying and analysing the different methods of expenditure control that is being adopted by these hospitals, their practical application and their level of effectiveness. It is aimed at carrying out a comparative analysis of two hospitals. To achieve the aim of this research, secondary data through textbooks and journals were used to review some of the related literatures. Equally, questionnaires, interview and observation, which sought to find out facts needed for analysing, were used. The questionnaires were analyzed by simple percentages while hypothesis were tested using chisquare statistics. The findings of the analysis indicate among others that the method of expenditure control used by both hospitals are not the same; The daily control method for private hospitals and the vote card method for Government Hospitals. The different methods of expenditure control used by the two hospitals are effective, but with slight loopholes associated with vote card method. I recommend among others that both hospitals should adhere strictly to authorization procedure for drug purchased and materials purchases. Both hospitals should exhibit high degree of cash management and employ competent personnel for proper and efficient expenditure control. TABLE OF CONTENTSApproval pageiiCertification pageiiiDedicationivAcknowledgementvAbstractviiChapter One1.0Introduction11.1Background Of The Study11.2Statement Of the Problem41.3Objectives Of The Study61.4Research Questions61.5Formulation Of Hypotheses71.6Significance Of The Study81.7Scope Of The Study91.8Limitations Of The Study91.9Definitions Of Terms10Chapter Two 2.0Review Of Related Literature122.1Introduction122.2Overview Of Expenditure Control122.3The Expenditure Control Methods142.4Internal Auditing Overview192.5Management Audit252.6Cost Benefit Analysis272.7Quantitative Models For Expenditure Control282.8Items Related To the Income Generated In A Hospital322.9Items Related To The Expenditure Of A Hospital362.10The Expenditure Control Method That Are In Application372.11Vote Card Method of Expenditure Control42Chapter ThreeResearch design and Methodology3.0Introduction453.1Sources of Data463.2Research Instrument473.3Reliability and Validity of Research Instrument.483.4Population493.5Sample Size/Technique503.6Administration Of Research Instrument523.7Method Of Data Analysis523.8Decision Criterion For Validation Of Hypotheses53Chapter Four4.0Data Presentation and Analysis544.1Data Analysis/Presentation544.2Testing Of Hypotheses674.3Discussion of Findings75Chapter Five5.0Summary of findings, Conclusion and Recommendations785.1Summary of findings785.2Conclusion795.3Recommendation s79Bibliography82Appendix 185 Appendix 286CHAPTER ONE1.0INTRODUCTION 1.1BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY Expenditure control or cost control is part of management control process, in every organisation.This process is very important to any organisation be it profit making organisation or nonprofit making organisation. Thus, lack of this practice in any organisation will cause misapplication of cash in cash disbursement process and this will create a very big problem leading the organisation into deficit and at an extreme case, the organisation might wind up. Many researches have been conducted in the reason for winding up of companies and organisation in which lack of expenditure control process had found responsible.Expenditure control has been defined as the process by which managers utilize effectively and efficiently, the scarce resource in the achievement of the organisational goals. At this juncture, let us look at expenditure and control from separate perspective.Expenditure is the total amount spent on the process of trying to achieve a particular organisational goal. Control means to order, limit, instruct or rule something or someones actions. It is or organisation managers to make restrictions on wages increases, immigrate credit and so on which are all expenditure.As regards, this research work, which is the comparative study of expenditure control methods in government and privately owned Hospitals, A study of the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital Enugu UNTH and Toronto Hospital and Maternity Onitsha; this implies a comparative study of nonprofit making organisations, since UNTH is government owned Hospital while Toronto Hospital is privately owned Hospital as a category of profit making organisation. Nonprofit making organisations are characterized by the following:aThere is neither a conscious profit motive nor an expectation of earning net income. bNo profit of any excess of revenue over expenditure is distributed to those who contributed support through taxes and voluntary donations. In profit making organisations, the reverse of these characteristics is the case in the sense that their major objective is to maximize profit and excess of revenue over expenditure are given to the owners of the organisation.Government owned hospitals pay more attention to services they render to the public, as their major objectives is to provide services that fulfil a social needs for those who do not have the purchasing power to acquire these services themselves. Irrespective of the fact that privately owned hospitals try to render good and quality services to the public, they pay more attention to maximize of profit which their major objective.Comparative study of expenditure control in Government and privately owned Hospital which is major research question in this research work has to with the different ways and methods by which expenditure is being controlled in each of the hospitals so that they will not run into deficit or liquidations.According to Johnson 1976, the management control concept which imbibes the expenditure control are the same both in profit oriented and nonprofit oriented organisations, but the implication of these conceptsdiffer in important respect. We will want to find out if also the expenditure control methods are the same or differ in the two hospitals under study, owning to the fact that one is profit oriented and the other is nonprofit oriented.1.2  STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEMThe problems encountered by the Government and privately owned Hospitals in expenditure control are as follows:  The problem of daily control method and the vote card method. The problem encountered is to know the effective method to use in the two hospitals. Here, the problem encountered is to check whether the daily control method will be efficient and effective in the Government owned hospitals or whether the vote card method is the best.  Another problem encountered by the hospitals in expenditure control is the problem of internal control. Internal control is the essential feature of an organisation, be it profit making or nonprofit making, and it is expected to be well managed effectively and efficiently. Anyproblem or limitation of the internal control will pose a problem to the expenditure control of the organisation.Therefore, the above problems encountered by the two hospitals are the problems of expenditure control methods encountered by the government and privately owned hospitals by the government and privately owned hospitals that attracted the attention of the researcher.The problem definition in this research work is to investigate and analyse the different ways and methods by which expenditure is controlled in government owned hospitals and privately owned hospitals so that they will not run into deficit and liquidation. As a comparative study, two hospitals has been selected for the study, they are: University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital Enugu UNTH for government owned Hospitals, and Toronto Hospital and Maternity Onitsha for privately owned hospitals.In this research, we study the different methods of expenditure control being adopted by these hospitals and their practical application and their level of effectiveness.This study will form a basis for our analysis which will help to answer some research questions. 1.3  OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDYThis study is conducted to:1.Ascertain the expenditure control method adopted by the government and privately owned hospitals. 2.Establish whether government and privately owned hospitals are operating the same of different system of accounting. 3.Compare the expenditure method or model adopted by the privately owned hospitals with that of the government owned hospital if there is a difference. 4.Ascertain the efficiency and effectiveness of these expenditure control methods in the operation of the privately and government owned hospitals. 5.Make recommendations based on the findings. 1.4RESEARCH QUESTIONS 1.What expenditure control methods are adopted in the two hospitals 2.Do privately owned hospitals and government owned hospitals operate the same method of expenditure control 3.Are there any similarities and differences in their method and application  4.How efficient and effective are they to their users