Communication and Transparency as a Means to Strengthening Workplace Culture during COVID-19 (Nadkarni, A., Levy-Carrick, N., Kroll, D., Gitlin, D., & Silbersweig, D., 2021): https://doi.org/10.31478/202103a.
Background
Four Brigham and Women’s Hospital authors collaborated on this article. It emphasizes the importance of improving Transparency and communication among medical teams as part of a broader effort to combat clinician burnout. Also of interest to the writers is how nurses, social workers, physicians, and medical assistants work together in front-line clinical teams. Communication’s significance in preserving mutual trust and social cohesion is the focus of this article. They also intend to address how clinical leadership and front-line physicians might work together to alleviate both ambiguity and confusion. In the COVID-19 era, it was vital to invent the use of email to transmit healthcare policies. The involvement of community leaders, such as chiefs and team leaders, helped to co-create the practice. For the sake of disseminating knowledge about laboratory tests, administering therapy as needed, and donning personal protective equipment, many Zoom meetings were held.
Key Findings
Values, beliefs, and social practices that are common to a group are collectively referred to as “culture.” Clinicians need a strong culture of well-being, especially during times of crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic and others. The cornerstone for a culture of wellness for clinicians is the necessity for effective communication that incorporates complete Transparency about the changing nature of operations. The degree to which leaders and clinicians communicate back and forth to involve clinicians in decision-making is a vital indicator of the success of this culture. Clear, consistent, and genuine communication fosters a sense of community. The email faculty needed to address the issue of burnout to convey information as rapidly as possible to all members to improve communication.
Realistic but uplifting appraisals are likely because of effective communication, which reduces organizational distance. It appeared that Zoom videoconferencing was critical to addressing administrative and clinical issues. A lack of voice in decision-making or reduced autonomy due to increased workload should be handled correctly if burnout and a sense of cultural belonging are reduced. In addition, clinicians should be involved in studying problems and developing solutions for issues that directly affect them through participatory management and collaborative action planning. Interactivity can be promoted by other roles and duties, such as fast decision-making and social adoption of technology. The faculty might work together to adapt clinic operations to the remote situation using Microsoft Team. Reduce burnout by keeping employees linked across the organization through strategic communication. Patients should go to departments where communication is well established. As a result, communication fosters a sense of community among patients and improves their overall well-being.
Planning Considerations
To facilitate successful communication, persistent chat functionalities are incorporated into communication systems. Microsoft Teams, for example, is a critical part of many organizations’ IT infrastructures. Microsoft Teams provides a platform for teams to collaborate and exchange information from afar. The chat component, for example, was available to most faculties during the COVID-19 period for participatory troubleshooting. Implementing such tools and tactics will necessitate employee training, employment of computer specialists, and financial support from various sources, not least of which is the organization’s internal resources. The lack of funding could be one of the key impediments to execution. Microsoft Teams has also been linked to the difficulty of usage. For example, creating tip sheets is a daunting task. As a matter of ethical concern, the faculty should offer sufficient protection for the privacy and confidentiality of patients’ data when implementing these procedures.
Executive Leadership and Physician Well-being: Nine Organizational Strategies to Promote Engagement and Reduce Burnout (Tait D. Shanafelt, and John H. Noseworthy, 2017): https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mayocp.2016.10.004
Background
The authors of this article, Tait D. and John H. discuss ways that organizations can increase employee involvement and decrease employee burnout. Physician burnout is morally and ethically necessary to address. Broken relationships, alcohol abuse, and physician suicide result from physician burnout. According to research, physician burnout has a negative impact on the quality of care, the safety of patients, and the satisfaction of patients. Physician prescription patterns, test orders, the danger of malpractice suits, and whether or not patients follow physicians’ medical recommendations have also been connected to physician discomfort. – In several specializations, there is a national scarcity of nurses and doctors, making it difficult to maintain acceptable staffing levels. This article aims to explain ways to improve physician engagement and reduce burnout.
Key Findings
The constant temptation to stay up with competitors in the technological “arms race” and to invest resources in maintaining a cutting-edge physical plant is created by patient satisfaction assessments and overall ratings of hospital “quality.” Cyber thieves and nation governments pose a persistent threat to information security and the trust of patients and the general population. Physician burnout is exacerbated by excessive workload, corporate culture, and a career that values social support and community at work, which is characterized by a desire for efficiency and resources. Many studies have shown that the culture and environment in which physicians work significantly impact whether they remain engaged or burn out. When an organization’s objective is to provide service or quality instead of making a profit, its values are reflected in how senior leaders behave, how the organization communicates and what it expects from its employees.
Planning Considerations
The following nine tactics are critical to fostering a sense of belonging in the workplace. Show that the organization cares about the well-being of its physicians by acknowledging the issue of burnout. To move forward, this is an essential first step. Secondly, take advantage of your position as a leader. Leaders must also be able to discern the particular talents and motivations of each physician in their team to be effective. Finally, design and implement targeted interventions. Another step is to build a sense of community in the workplace.” To assist doctors in dealing with the difficulties of their work, peer support has long been a crucial element in the medical community. Another stage is to make sure that rewards and incentives are used correctly. To make use of this concept, several health care organizations have begun to tie physician pay directly to performance. In addition, make sure your values and culture are in sync. Keeping an eye on elements that influence culture, assessing strategies to keep values fresh, and occasionally taking stock of whether actions and values are matched are essential for firms to stay relevant. Encourage adaptability and integration of work and personal life. Despite this, resources for building resilience and self-care should be made available. Organizations can assist physicians in caring for themselves by providing them with tools for self-calibration, resources for self-care, and training in skills that promote resilience. Make sure that organizational science is facilitated and funded.
Companies must invest in initiatives to decrease physician burnout and encourage engagement to implement these processes. Doctors’ education and funding are essential. To address burnout and foster a sense of community, stakeholders must make sacrifices to provide resources.
Cracking the hybrid work culture problem: how to create a strong culture across a workforce you may never even see (Ellie Evans, 2022): https://doi.org/10.1108/shr-12-2021-0065
Background
Ellie Evans wrote this essay as a Strategic HR evaluation. When creating a healthy corporate culture, this study will focus on how hybrid work environments can be implemented. In the wake of the pandemic, many organizations are rethinking their corporate culture approach. This study examines how to reclaim and maintain a positive long-term culture for the company. Through an examination of pre-pandemic work practices and how to continue this in the future, as well as strategies to ensure that employees are satisfied, this is accomplished. In the wake of COVID-19, individuals were separated from one another and lost their sense of community. Some practices were suggested to support the long-term development of a strong culture and colleague connection. “Water cooler” moments should be redefined because connectivity is king. “Want to make colleagues feel valued?” was the third practice or policy on the list. Reward them for their efforts, understand their needs, build a distinctive culture, and reap the benefits for years to come.
Key Findings
Many firms have invested significant time and effort in creating a company culture that attracts and retains top personnel. This has often been utilized as a competitive advantage. Coworker relationships and the support they provide each other define an organization’s culture. Organizations can help foster a sense of belonging by listening to their employees, making them happy, and rewarding them. Creative thinking, cooperation, and better decision-making are all bolstered by positive company culture. The foundations of a good corporate culture are built on a set of crucial working behaviors that help you live your own culture. Businesses can also urge their employees to make the most of their office space to reestablish significant ties and contacts at work. It’s critical for the future of office work that employees are encouraged to express their ideas on how things should be done. To foster a sense of belonging, companies must show their employees that they are valued. Employees who are treated with respect and dignity by their employers are more productive. Therefore, it is more critical than ever those companies recognize and reward their employees for their efforts. Thank you goes a long way, even when it’s just a simple “thank you.” Coworkers can now take advantage of these occasions to gather and celebrate their successes together as well. Once again, this will strengthen relationships among coworkers while igniting enthusiasm for a common goal.
Planning Considerations
Leaders can actively look for ways to lessen the impact and purposefully set excellent examples so that everyone in the organization – including those new starts who are just starting – knows it is appropriate to call things out and question them. Organizations should devote significant resources to cultivating the ideal work environment to recruit and retain the most extraordinary personnel. Long-term success in a company’s culture depends on promoting and modeling critical values from the top down, revising outdated values, fostering new forms of intra- and inter-organizational communication, and publicly acknowledging the contributions of others, especially in times of change. Stakeholders should participate in all of these activities. Resources could be a significant impediment to achieving a culture of belonging. The cost of learning how to use the internet and computers is prohibitive. To link employees, companies must ensure they are doing what is proper and trustworthy (beneficence).
References
Evans, E. (2022). Cracking the hybrid work culture conundrum: how to create a strong culture across a workforce you may never even see. Strategic HR Review, 21(2), 46-49. https://doi.org/10.1108/shr-12-2021-0065
Nadkarni, A., Levy-Carrick, N., Kroll, D., Gitlin, D., & Silbersweig, D. (2021). Communication and Transparency as a Means to Strengthening Workplace Culture during COVID-19. NAM Perspectives. https://doi.org/10.31478/202103a
Partain, D., Ingram, C., & Strand, J. (2017). Providing Appropriate End-of-Life Care to Religious and Ethnic Minorities. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 92(1), 147-152. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mayocp.2016.08.024
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