Workforce Management Wellness Series - Part 1: Improving Workplace Quality

This first installment of a three-part white paper series addresses the quality of life practices that attract and nurture highly engage, quality-focused employees.

There’s a crisis today in the healthcare industry; a crisis of spirit. No matter what conclusions are drawn about the pros and cons of healthcare reform, it is having a psychological effect, as shown in a recent study in which 57% of all nurse leader participants acknowledged healthcare reform had already had a substantial impact on morale.

As healthcare reform begins in earnest and the extent of its impact becomes clear, healthcare organizations will need to place renewed focus on the morale of those individuals who are working so hard with so much less.

Since labor costs represent nearly 60% of a hospital’s overall expenses,2 workforce management plays a major role in achieving the dual goals of cost reduction and improved productivity. As a proven, cost-effective way to attract and retain motivated workers and increase morale, efforts to increase employee engagement will become a lifeline for hospitals, especially as economic conditions improve and competition for top talent increases.

Among other employee engagement strategies, scheduling tools that give employees freedom to choose when and where they work are proving to be instrumental in raising quality of life and job satisfaction – both of which are critical to patient care and satisfaction, and ultimately, to improving the bottom line.

The challenge: Many people in today’s workforce are “disengaged.” In one study from Gallup3, only 30% of surveyed employees were considered to be “engaged,” with 50% “disengaged.” That’s a lot of people putting forth minimal effort, doing just enough to keep their jobs. Surprisingly, 20% of the employees in the same study were actively disengaged. According to the research, actively disengaged workers are the excuse-makers of the organization. They tend to stir things up and blame others for problems. Like disengaged employees, this group is a drain on the bottom line.

Gallup found a complete reversal in “world-class” organizations, where 63% of employees were engaged, 29% were disengaged, and only 8% were actively disengaged. Not surprisingly, this pattern of disengagement is mirrored within the healthcare industry. According to many studies, nurses are three to four times more likely to be dissatisfied with their jobs than the average U.S. worker (with nurses age 44+ four times more dissatisfied than the national average). Access This Content To Read This White Paper In Its Entirety.