Organizational culture determines how employees can express themselves, and sometimes, it is rather prohibitive. Such issues as fatigue and job stress directly affect nurse turnover, but the situation becomes worse when one is unable to address them and is forced to continue (Lee & Jang, 2019). While organizational culture does not necessarily create the described phenomena, as nursing is inherently stressful, it influences how they are treated (Lee & Jang, 2019). Poor organizational culture will only perpetuate the issues, blocking any outlets for employees to express dissatisfaction and maintaining the idea that an organization’s needs are more important than an individual’s ones. Thus, a manager should attempt to challenge the harmful status quo.
Here, the distinction between a leader and a manager will be in the formal status. The latter can revise an organization’s or a department’s Code and make such practices as staff meetings and wellbeing reports official. Moreover, one may hire a mental care specialist who will supervise those who experience fatigue or stress. Overall, a manager can make organizational culture more sensitive to employees’ psychological issues by formalizing certain procedures and eliminating points that hinder self-expression. Meanwhile, a leader has a more direct approach by implementing a style that will inspire the staff to use their voice (Duan et al., 2016). Transformational leadership appears particularly fruitful for making employees believe that one’s opinion or concern is impactful (Duan et al., 2016). For instance, a leader can suggest that they also experience fatigue and stress so that the staff will personally identify with them and become emboldened to raise their concerns (Duan et al., 2016). Then, everyone shares the same issue, meaning that the solution should also be developed collectively. Thus, as a leader, one focuses on interpersonal relationships and cooperation to tackle problems.
Healthcare managers often face the dilemma of saving the budget to ensure that future patients receive proper care and spending the finances to help the admitted ones now. While both are necessary, some tend to prioritize the former due to the perception of pressure (Akinleye et al., 2019). The issue does not appear to be confined to a single organization, it is spread throughout the country, requiring a federal response (Akinleye et al., 2019). However, in times of financial constraints, hospitals act differently depending on their organizational culture. Some will be more considerate to the patients, and others will prioritize money. Although a direct link exists between hospital financial performance and quality care provision, less harmful approaches to budget-saving should be implemented to ensure stability regardless of the situation.
One practice that is proven to impact patients in a negative way is floating. It is supposed to compensate for staff shortages, which are an unfortunate reality of the nursing profession (O’Connor & Dugan, 2017). Usually, one is sent to another unit, which may have a radically different environment and require unique approaches (O’Connor & Dugan, 2017). An unprepared employee will be unable to address a patient’s needs, and even those with sufficient experience tend to struggle because such transfers can be sudden and anxiety-inducing (O’Connor & Dugan, 2017). Through organizational culture, the staff is made to believe that the practice is necessary, although they also realize that their actions may harm patients (O’Connor & Dugan, 2017). If floating is impossible to eliminate, what managers can do is to mitigate its negative impacts for all parties involved (O’Connor & Dugan, 2017). However, deliberately refusing to hire new employees to maintain artificial shortages is another issue, and such people probably should not be involved in healthcare.
References
Akinleye, D. D., McNutt, L.-A., Lazariu, V., & McLaughlin, C. C. (2019). Correlation between hospital finances and quality and safety of patient care. PLOS ONE, 14(8), e0219124. Web.
Duan, J., Li, C., Xu, Y., & Wu, C. (2016). Transformational leadership and employee voice behavior: A Pygmalion mechanism. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 38(5), 650–670. Web.
Lee, E., & Jang, I. (2019). Nurses’ fatigue, job stress, organizational culture, and turnover intention: A culture–work–health model. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 42(2), 108-116. Web.
O’Connor, K., & Dugan, J. L. (2017). Addressing floating and patient safety. Nursing, 47(2), 57–58. Web.