Healthcare is a vital sphere of modern society’s social and economic structure. It is responsible for the physical and mental aspects of human health on a global scale, which means its efficiency is a priority for professionals and legislators. Staff management at hospitals, nursing homes, and clinics is essential for the community’s well-being. There are many theories for optimal organizational ethics and efficiency backed up by behavioral research – the Hawthorne Studies, McGregor’s Theories X and Y, and Lewin’s Behavioral Study, that can be useful in implementation in healthcare.
Despite its value to society, healthcare is still subject to current socioeconomic circumstances and problems. According to Touma (2021), the modern job market suffers from employees being less loyal to their companies. Job security and displacement play a big role in how employees participate in the workplace and job satisfaction. Then there are issues of improper management and understaffing, which lead to overworking and low job satisfaction, especially in public healthcare. In addition to these problems, the healthcare sphere is moving toward a multidisciplinary team-managed environment (Borkowski and Meese, 2020). Many healthcare systems have restructured themselves into integrated delivery networks to combat these issues. The systems provide a wide range of services to patients in need, usually led by a single entity that operates the lower-level networks (Borkowski and Meese, 2020). The integration allows for the efficiency of staff management and care provision.
Organizational behavior and its effect on the workplace have been thoroughly studied. The Hawthorne Studies discussed the impact of human factors on workers productivity. The study was conducted at the Hawthorne Plant of the Western Electric company, and its workers were the research participants. After the illumination experiments showed that working conditions did not affect worker productivity, the relay-assembly groups showed interesting results (Borkowski and Meese, 2020). The ladder experiments centered on providing employees with good working conditions and an environment suitable for socializing. A researcher who played the role of supervisor was instructed to ask the workers about their mental and physical well-being. The workplace’s productivity increased and stayed stable after the working conditions were restored to normal.
The interviewing process revealed that the workers productivity and attitudes towards change depended on personal social conditioning and the human factor. The former describes the employee’s personal goals, fears, and aspirations, while the ladder is the satisfaction they receive from socializing in the workplace. The worker’s dissatisfaction severely affects their job performance and participation in the community. The research affected the way employers value informal worker gatherings and connections.
The theories developed by McGregor focused on the role of leadership and decision-making. Theory X is an authoritarian leadership style, where the upper management people are disinterested in human interactions. They are focused on maximizing productivity through rewards and punishment. Touma (2021) writes that in this organizational system, “centralization of power leads employees to dissatisfaction, as it also forces them to please the manager.” (p. 22). Workers are not trustworthy or loyal; they only have one responsibility – to complete the tasks given to them. It discourages employees from socializing or taking pleasure in their job.
Theory Y is based on worker commitment to their job and community. The employee role is much more important and encourages participation in social and work-related events, whereas the manager’s role is reduced severely. “Managers should be aware that business is all about people, so if we trust people, they will trust us back, and they will be more productive” (Touma. 2021, p. 22). Workers to employ creative and critical thinking when problem-solving because of high autonomy.
Lewin’s Behavioral Theory or Change Theory is widely accepted as a three-step process to incite change within the workplace environment. The theory explains that two forces are actively involved in the changing process – driving and restraining forces (Borkowski and Meese, 2020). To initiate change, employees must either restrict the restraining forces that halt change or increase the driving forces that induce it. In Lewin’s theory, the process can be divided into three stages: unfreezing, change, and refreezing (Hussain et al., 2018). The first stage implies the driving force, the leader or an influential member, to unfreeze the organization into actively working towards change. Next, the employees participate in the changing process, share knowledge, and attempt to implement new rules. After the change has reached the desired outcome, the organization enters a state of freeze, where it stays dormant until a change is initiated again.
The healthcare system can employ strategies from the Hawthorne Studies that showed to solve the issue of employee dissatisfaction and increase productivity. Allowing employees to commute in an informal environment and advising managers and supervisors to be concerned over the worker’s well-being will create a community of healthcare professionals that enjoy their job. Giving the healthcare providers autonomy and trusting their judgment in making decisions, demonstrated by McGregor’s Theory Y, builds employee loyalty. The process of such a change is illustrated by Lewin’s Behavioral Theory, which outlines the steps to be taken.
In conclusion, the healthcare system is integral to the functioning of society but suffers from employee dissatisfaction, disloyalty, understaffing, and overworking. Organizational theories, such as the Hawthorne Studies and McGregors Theory Y, will actively help the struggling workers by providing them with autonomy, socialization, and trust. Lastly, the changes that need to be made to reform the healthcare system are explained by Lewin. The theory proposes a process of change through employee participation and knowledge sharing.
References
Borkowski, N., & Meese, A. K. (2020). Organizational Behavior in Health Care. Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Hussain, S. T., Lei, S., Akram, T., Haider, M. J., Hussain, S. H., & Ali, M. (2018). Kurt Lewin’s change model: A critical review of the role of leadership and employee involvement in organizational change. Journal of Innovation & Knowledge, 3(3), 123-127. Web.
Touma, J. (2021). Theories X and Y in Combination for Effective Change during Economic Crisis. Journal of Human Resource and Sustainability Studies, 9(01), 20. Web.
