As, in most hospitals, the cost of labor is the largest component of operating expenses, the institutions will focus on promoting productivity as a way to reduce this burden.
Fundamental for having an immediate impact on the provision of health services, and even of the population, the performance of the workforce is good to the extent that the institution manages to provide sufficient resources for it to have a good capacity for a fair and efficient response.
Here are some practical tips for the manager of a hospital as suggested by best hospital consultants in India to have an indication of how to increase the productivity of his work team.
1 – Mapping functions and characteristics of the team of professionals
For years, theories supported that the weak performance of the health worker was caused mainly by the lack of knowledge and skills. In recent years, that perception has changed.
To understand why health workers perform differently, it is useful to consider the factors that influence their work as characteristics of the population served, the health system and the environment that surrounds it.
2 – Invest in an IT system capable of supporting the operation as a whole.
Improvements in workforce performance and productivity usually result from a series of interconnected interventions, not from uncoordinated actions or from a single action.
Therefore, hospital consulting companies in India recommend to have an IT system capable of interconnecting all areas of the hospital when seeking increased productivity in a health institution.
A BI (Business Intelligence) system, for example, can eliminate manual processes by reducing the execution time of tasks, standardize operational processes and improve information flow.
An integrated system can avoid the problem of lack of interoperability between various systems operating in public health units.
3 – Involve all teams in the process
Although it is implicit, the lack of collaboration between teams is one of the biggest obstacles to productivity in a public health institution.
In addition to investing in an IT system, the manager needs to stimulate better individual performance and the health workforce as a whole. By creating a process of interdependence between the teams, the fulfillment of the activities is conditioned to the data entry.
In other words, everyone becomes responsible and part of a pre-established and organized cycle, and thus understand the value of the tasks to carry out the total operation.
4 – Create team performance indicators
Apparently it can be difficult to measure and monitor the performance of a team of a public health institution. However, an IT system can translate that process into data, making interpretation easier.
In addition to HR and recruitment indicators, it is necessary to establish new indicators to better capture the performance of the workforce.
5 – Support standards and codes of conduct
It is very common for the productivity of companies to be linked to the misunderstanding of information, excessive expenses and lack of visualization of costs.
However, the performance of health workers in terms of skills and responsiveness is also influenced by their sense of professional identity, vocation and work ethic. Creating values, standards and aspirations are other ways to support and inform productivity. If you are facing any type of problem in your hospital or medical center, the best step for you is to take help of healthcare management consulting in India as it can provide you with various solutions to deal with the prevailing problems.