The issue under focus is the insufficient level of commitment of the nursing staff to the delivery of patient care services. The lack of motivation results in the perpetuating cycle of mistakes and negligence. In the best-case scenario, the clients are left unsatisfied with the quality of healthcare. In the worst case, the well-being of the patients is jeopardized, which may even result in a negative patient care outcome.
The most effective way to resolve the commitment problem is to utilize the Six Sigma quality model. It is a strategic tool designed to ascertain and eliminate the causes of defects in the work process. At the core of the model lie five essential steps: define, measure, analyze, improve, and control (Chugani et al., 2017). The define phase involves identifying the needed result and the problem which prevents the achievement of the desired outcome. The measuring step encompasses the collection of critical-to-quality characteristics. Then, the root causes of the defects are analyzed. The next stage is comprised of the efforts directed at mitigating the causative factors. Finally, the control phase ensures the maintenance of the improvements.
The first step in working with Six Sigma is defining the problem. When applied to nursing, the end result is patient satisfaction with nursing care. There are two primary factors that adversely affect the process – clinical incompetence and duty negligence (Karami et al., 2017). A nurse who does not have sufficient knowledge or is not able to perform their duties jeopardizes the clients’ well-being. At the same time, a nurse who neglects the clients’ perspective or does not respect their wishes is equally damaging because they harm the reputation of their healthcare organization. Both causes stem from the lack of commitment to the profession. Establishing the fact of commitment issues requires collecting data from anonymous online employee and patient questionnaires. Patients and nurses would be requested to answer a set of questions, targeting their satisfaction with job conditions, healthcare delivery, and the impression patient care makes on them. The more negative results are gathered, the stronger the argument that nursing staff has commitment issues.
The second stage is the identification of critical-to-quality characteristics. As it should be evident from the previous assessment, accomplishing patient satisfaction requires competent personnel who are motivated to sharpen their skills while maintaining a welcoming and professional attitude towards the patients. Nursing competence manifests itself in the set of skills necessary for the execution of all clinical procedures (Bing-Jonsson et al., 2016). Attitude is expressed through respect for the patients’ needs and requests. Ultimately, professional enthusiasm and determination is the primary driving factor behind both these characteristics. The subsequent question is understanding why there are commitment issues among the nursing staff.
The third phase is the analysis of the defects. There are three reasons for the lack of nursing commitment. First, an insufficient level of actual education prevents nurses from understanding the health risks and the measures essential for mitigating them (Bing-Jonsson et al., 2016). Second, nurses may lack the conception of cultural sensitivity, which demands a heavier emphasis on communication and interaction with the patients (Karami et al., 2017). When people neglect the value of proper communication, they precipitate cultural misunderstandings and social apprehension. In the nursing setting, it may mean a prejudiced attitude against religious patients, race-based hostility, or any other form of cultural insensitivity. Finally, nurses who have been in the healthcare facility for a long period of time may suffer occupational burnout, which leaves them indifferent to the patients’ well-being (Karami et al., 2017). Combined together, these factors determine how committed a person is to their job.
The fourth stage is selecting the ways of resolving the problem. Inadequate education can be resolved by organizing training courses for those nurses who do not meet the necessary requirements. Another way is to institute additional hiring criteria, which would require the nurses to pass a practice-based test aimed at evaluating their factual skill level. The problem of cultural sensitivity of the nursing staff can be addressed with obligatory training of the personnel. The administration can explain that communicative deficiencies backfire in the form of negative client feedback, which impacts the hospitals’ reputations, which will, in its turn, result in the nurses’ salaries. The administration can also offer financial incentives to nurses whose clients were not upset or left dissatisfied with services. The data about the clients’ level of satisfaction can be gathered during short surveys done upon the discharge of the patients. As for occupational burnout, it is essential to understand that it is a mental issue caused by stress, fatigue, and insufficient rest (Mudallal et al., 2017). The administration can rotate nurses, making sure that the most loaded shifts are distributed between the entire staff evenly.
The final step is making sure that the changes are constant. Therefore, the administration should take the test during the hiring stage as a continuous rather than temporary practice. At the same time, every six months, the nursing staff will be required to attend competence and cultural sensitivity training courses to ensure the continuation of nurse-patient interaction. As for the rotating shifts, the administration can implement a rule dictating that a nurse cannot follow the same shift more than three times in a row. It is possible to use the same anonymous online questionnaires to collect data on the fact of commitment issues.
As a result, Six Sigma can identify two primary reasons behind the lack of commitment – inadequate education and cultural insensitivity. Both can be resolved with proper courses, financial incentives, and rules regulating shift rotation. The data about the quality of the healthcare changes can be gathered through client surveys upon discharge. These surveys will comprise quantitative evidence for the success of the implemented improvements. Anonymous questionnaires will provide additional data, which will either corroborate the fact of commitment issues or refute it.
References
Bing-Jonsson, P. C., Hofoss, D., Kirkevold, M., Bjørk, I. T., & Foss, C. (2016). Sufficient competence in community elderly care? Results from a competence measurement of nursing staff.BMC Nursing, 15(1), 1-11. Web.
Chugani, N., Kumar, V., Garza-Reyes, J. A., Rocha-Lona, L., & Upadhyay, A. (2017). Investigating the green impact of Lean, Six Sigma and Lean Six Sigma: A systematic literature review.International Journal of Lean Six Sigma, 8(1), 7-32. Web.
Karami, A., Farokhzadian, J., & Foroughameri, G. (2017). Nurses’ professional competency and organizational commitment: Is it important for human resource management?. PloS One, 12(11), 1-15. Web.
Mudallal, R. H., Othman, W. A. M., & Al Hassan, N. F. (2017). Nurses’ burnout: The influence of leader empowering behaviors, work conditions, and demographic traits.INQUIRY: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing, 54, 1-10. Web.