Healthy company culture is essential to the success of any business. For example, 88% of employment seekers say a positive work culture is vital to their satisfaction with a job. A hospital or medical practice is no different from any other workplace in that regard. Employee satisfaction impacts recruitment, retention, and productivity. It also affects how patients are treated.
A happy medical staff will go above and beyond to improve the practice and keep patient satisfaction high.
What Makes a Good Medical Culture?
A medical facility can be a high-stress operation. Overworked employees in understaffed situations might find themselves being short-tempered with patients and with each other. Throw a pandemic or other medical crisis into the mix, and you have the recipe for a toxic environment.
Promoting a healthy work culture in the medical field requires cooperation on all levels.
Investing in Employees
An excellent medical practice culture puts employee needs at the forefront to deliver exceptional patient care. Letting staff members know that they are appreciated and doing a good job can make a difference in their performance and work satisfaction. 85% of HR managers say that employee recognition programs enhance the culture of their organizations, and 27% of employees report having left a job due to the lack of recognition.
Mental health initiatives, physical wellness programs, and opportunities for employees to socialize away from the office all help keep up employee morale. When a medical facility invests in practices like these, it shows the staff that their well-being is vital to the organization.
Communication
Good communication is necessary for positive workplace culture. Employees who feel like their voices are heard are 4.6 times more likely to feel empowered on the job and will, in turn, perform their best work. When a clinician is unhappy, they must have somewhere to turn. If employees are afraid to speak up, the ensuing frustration will lead them to seek employment elsewhere.
Colleagues must also feel comfortable sharing ideas and offering constructive criticism.
Strong Leadership
The characteristics of a healthy culture like employee incentives and open communication cannot happen without strong leadership. A strong leader is a positive force for the team. They ensure that no one gets left behind and that needed resources are available along the way. Like a shepherd tending a flock, good leadership will help team members reach their full potential. It helps everyone feel valued when they all have a sense of purpose.
Good medical leadership is crucial for delivering high-quality healthcare. A practice or hospital that has a reputation of being well-led will be more likely to attract the best clinicians.
How to Assess Your Medical Practice Culture
Assessing the culture of your medical practice is the first step toward developing a healthy and high-performing workplace. With a positive culture intact, you can find clinician candidates who will fit in and enhance it.
However, obtaining an accurate picture of the existing culture can be difficult because it is hard to be objective about a familiar environment. Understanding what the culture looks like requires taking a step back and viewing the workplace with new eyes. For example, is everyone happy to be there, or do they show up to receive a paycheck? How about patients? Do they seem pleased with the service they receive, or are they stressed out after visiting with a clinician? Do people usually smile when they pass each other in the hallway?
Surveying both staff and clients is an excellent way to get feedback about the culture. Observing emotions as people engage with each other says a lot about how they feel about being there.
Recruiting Top Talent That Fits Your Culture
91% of managers say a candidate's alignment with the company culture is equal to or sometimes more important than skills and experience. Skills and experience are the top priority in medical recruiting, but if a clinician doesn't meld with the culture, it can make things difficult for everyone involved.
It is best not to judge a clinician within the first 10 minutes of an interview. Making hiring decisions based on first impressions is never a good strategy. Instead, learn about their values and communicate your own to make sure they align with those of your team. Then, take the time and effort to find candidates who will further the purpose of the practice and enhance the work environment.
Retention
Because turnover is high in many organizations, employers are feeling pressured to enact positive change. Within a medical facility, retaining talent is dependent on a culture of inclusion that helps clinicians feel like they are a team. A family-style atmosphere in a hospital puts both staff and patients in the mindset that health and recovery are the goals they are all working toward. Patients who are exposed to such a culture tend to heal faster.
When clinicians feel needed by an institution, they are more likely to keep the job.
Productivity
Statistics show that satisfied employees are 12% more productive than the average worker. Conversely, disgruntled workers are generally 10% less productive. In the medical field, happy doctors perform better, and their patients are ultimately more satisfied with their service.
A positive medical practice culture fosters high productivity, better decision-making, and less downtime.
VISTA Can Help with clinician recruiting
Finding the right clinicians to fit in with your culture can seem nearly impossible for a busy hospital or medical practice. However, hiring the wrong people is costly and leads to gaps in care.
VISTA can help you identify a candidate pool that aligns with your company culture. Contact a VISTA expert to get started today!
