Although I have only worked in the health care industry for a short period of time, I have encountered many incidents of disrespect among staff. It is understandable that this behavior is not demonstrated in all aspects of health care but it is important that it is addressed. Employees should feel as if they are appreciated and respected by their fellow co-workers and supervisors. Sometimes supervisors do not see their employees as equals and this is not true. Without the assistance of the employees, health care organizations would not run smoothly. Employers need their employees and employees should not be viewed as inferiors.
Workers should not be looked down upon or treated inhumanely. When constructive criticism is needed, it should be presented to employees professionally. Yelling or disrespected employees when errors are made is unnecessary and employees may be less likely to cooperate with supervisor.
This blog has been written because there have been many displays of disrespect in an industry that is supposed to show compassion. If employees are not able to respect each other, this may reflect in the behaviors demonstrated to patients. Therefore it is essential that health care providers and staff are able to work in an environment in which respect is given.
Additionally, the health care industry is an industry where teamwork is vital. If team members are not working together, this could also affect the care given to patients. The lack of teamwork could result in the lack of communication, which could lead to errors, and ultimately affect patient quality.
Although this blog did not address a particular case, I felt that it was necessary to address an issue that is seen frequently in the workplace. Health care administrators should stress the importance of team morale and respecting co-workers. The workplace is an environment in which people spend many hours and it is important that employees feel comfortable. Since disrespect and lack of compassion are not viewed as ethical. The ACHE Code of Ethics states that health care professionals should provide a work environment that displays and encourages ethical conduct by employees (Pozgar, 2005). Therefore, these are ethical concerns should be addressed by health care administrators.
Reference
Pozgar, George. (2005). Legal and ethical issues for health professionals. Jones & Bartlett Pub.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Timely Responses
Patients have the right to have their health care providers respond to them in a timely manner Pozgar, 2005). It is understandable that health care professionals have many patients to care for and they are often busy, but there should be standards in place to ensure health care professionals are not ignoring the concerns of patients. This is important to remember when reading the following case.
There was a case in which a patient expressed frustration with how she was treated during a visit with a new physician. She consulted with this physician because she thought they would have an answer to the questions she had regarding her illness (Pozgar, 2005). She expressed that she was initially seen by a medical student who wrote her history down on a sticky pad and the physician only consulted with her for about 10 minutes. After the consultation, the doctor was supposed to follow up with her which he never did. She wrote him a letter stating this information which he never responded to.
The physician in this case did not respect the rights of the patient. He did not provide a timely response and did not provide compassionate care. Ignoring the patient demonstrated the physician did not care about the needs of the patient. The patients want to feel as if their needs are taken care of and because this patient was going to this physician because she had extreme medical conditions, the physician’s help was needed.
If the physician did not know that was wrong with the patient or understand the patient’s condition, this should have been expressed. Therefore the patient could have consulted with another physician versus waiting for a response from this doctor.
The doctor did not commit themselves to the patient which is an ethical principle health care providers must always remember to do. Additionally, they did not respect the needs of the patient. These are a couple of the ethical issues that were demonstrated in this case.
As a health care administrator it is always important to ensure health care providers are following up with patients. If the physician was not able to promptly respond to the patient, they could have had another clinician follow up with the patient. The health care administrator could have addressed the patient in this case and apologized for how the patient was treated, even if the doctor still chose not to respond, it would have made the patient feel more comfortable that someone respond to their needs. Not responding could have also put the patient’s health in jeopardy, which could have created more issues for the health care provider and administration.
Reference
Pozgar, George. (2005). Legal and ethical issues for health professionals. Jones & Bartlett Pub.
There was a case in which a patient expressed frustration with how she was treated during a visit with a new physician. She consulted with this physician because she thought they would have an answer to the questions she had regarding her illness (Pozgar, 2005). She expressed that she was initially seen by a medical student who wrote her history down on a sticky pad and the physician only consulted with her for about 10 minutes. After the consultation, the doctor was supposed to follow up with her which he never did. She wrote him a letter stating this information which he never responded to.
The physician in this case did not respect the rights of the patient. He did not provide a timely response and did not provide compassionate care. Ignoring the patient demonstrated the physician did not care about the needs of the patient. The patients want to feel as if their needs are taken care of and because this patient was going to this physician because she had extreme medical conditions, the physician’s help was needed.
If the physician did not know that was wrong with the patient or understand the patient’s condition, this should have been expressed. Therefore the patient could have consulted with another physician versus waiting for a response from this doctor.
The doctor did not commit themselves to the patient which is an ethical principle health care providers must always remember to do. Additionally, they did not respect the needs of the patient. These are a couple of the ethical issues that were demonstrated in this case.
As a health care administrator it is always important to ensure health care providers are following up with patients. If the physician was not able to promptly respond to the patient, they could have had another clinician follow up with the patient. The health care administrator could have addressed the patient in this case and apologized for how the patient was treated, even if the doctor still chose not to respond, it would have made the patient feel more comfortable that someone respond to their needs. Not responding could have also put the patient’s health in jeopardy, which could have created more issues for the health care provider and administration.
Reference
Pozgar, George. (2005). Legal and ethical issues for health professionals. Jones & Bartlett Pub.
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Quality Blog #4: Quality and Reduction in Patient-Provider Contact
There is one aspect of quality I find very important to mention. Over the past years, the amount of time doctors spend with their patients has decreased. This includes outpatient and inpatient settings. Physicians used to spend more time assessing and treating patients. Standards in the health care industry have changed over time. Patients are spending less time in hospitals and receiving more outpatient treatment. Patients are also limited to the amount of time they are able to visit with their doctor.
This could be for several reasons. Physicians reduce time spent with patients in order to see more patients throughout the day. They also reduce patient visit times to reduce waiting times. Although reducing the amount of time physicians spend with patients seems beneficial, this practice could affect quality.
Additionally, managed care organizations have contributed to the reduction in time patients are able to spend with physicians, especially in inpatient settings. In 2008the average length of stay (LOS) in an inpatient setting was 4.6 days (HHS, 2009). The average length of stay for managed care patients was 3.8. Managed care organizations have played a huge role in the standards we have set for health care professionals. There is a maximum length of stay that is placed on hospitals. If patients are in the health care facility over the maximum length of stay, facilities are not paid for the costs accrued those additional days (Kongstvedt, 2007). Other payers like Medicare and Medicaid have adopted similar practices as a method of reducing costs. These methods of reducing costs could negatively affect quality.
I have had experiences in which I have felt rushed by physicians. During these experiences I did not feel that I received the quality of care I needed. I felt as if I walked out of the office with more questions than what I entered with.
Patients want to feel that clinicians care about their needs (Pozgar, 2005). This is a right of the patient. The patient has the right to receive compassionate care and often when patients are rushed this may not be the indication. When physicians do not spend an adequate amount of time with patients, quality is jeopardized. This issue could also increase the amount of errors in the health care industry. With the pressure to discharge a patient quickly, employees are prone to make more mistakes. Also, if providers are able to increase the amount of time with patients, errors can be corrected in a timely manner and more problems with the patient’s health may be found. If reducing the amount of time we spend with physicians will reduce quality, it is important to reevaluate some of the standards we have set for our health care system and find alternatives to reducing costs while not jeopardizing quality.
References
Kongstvedt, Peter. (2007). Essentials of managed health care. Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Pozgar, George. (2005). Legal and ethical issues for health professionals. Jones & Bartlett Pub.
U.S Department of Health and Human Services, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. (2009). 2008 national statistics:outcomes for all discharges
This could be for several reasons. Physicians reduce time spent with patients in order to see more patients throughout the day. They also reduce patient visit times to reduce waiting times. Although reducing the amount of time physicians spend with patients seems beneficial, this practice could affect quality.
Additionally, managed care organizations have contributed to the reduction in time patients are able to spend with physicians, especially in inpatient settings. In 2008the average length of stay (LOS) in an inpatient setting was 4.6 days (HHS, 2009). The average length of stay for managed care patients was 3.8. Managed care organizations have played a huge role in the standards we have set for health care professionals. There is a maximum length of stay that is placed on hospitals. If patients are in the health care facility over the maximum length of stay, facilities are not paid for the costs accrued those additional days (Kongstvedt, 2007). Other payers like Medicare and Medicaid have adopted similar practices as a method of reducing costs. These methods of reducing costs could negatively affect quality.
I have had experiences in which I have felt rushed by physicians. During these experiences I did not feel that I received the quality of care I needed. I felt as if I walked out of the office with more questions than what I entered with.
Patients want to feel that clinicians care about their needs (Pozgar, 2005). This is a right of the patient. The patient has the right to receive compassionate care and often when patients are rushed this may not be the indication. When physicians do not spend an adequate amount of time with patients, quality is jeopardized. This issue could also increase the amount of errors in the health care industry. With the pressure to discharge a patient quickly, employees are prone to make more mistakes. Also, if providers are able to increase the amount of time with patients, errors can be corrected in a timely manner and more problems with the patient’s health may be found. If reducing the amount of time we spend with physicians will reduce quality, it is important to reevaluate some of the standards we have set for our health care system and find alternatives to reducing costs while not jeopardizing quality.
References
Kongstvedt, Peter. (2007). Essentials of managed health care. Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Pozgar, George. (2005). Legal and ethical issues for health professionals. Jones & Bartlett Pub.
U.S Department of Health and Human Services, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. (2009). 2008 national statistics:outcomes for all discharges
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