Human Resource Management Overview in Health Care - Literature review Example

Human Resource Management Overview in Health Care The The Human Resource Management Overview in Health Care Human resource management plays a very critical and important role in the healthcare field. It plays the lead role of molding policies strategically through its leadership characteristics. Management of human capital is a daunting task for which above average expertise is required to hire, retain various posts as per the changing job role demands. Communication plays a critical role in furthering and meeting the desired needs of resource management. In this regard, past literature review can be helpful for healthcare human resource managers to manage their roles efficiently with the ever changing focus. The literature related to resource-based view (RBV) of companies reviews the level of employees’ knowledge, expertise, and capabilities along with their motivation and loyalty to be inseparable with the human capital of companies. More than that, formal and informal communications among employees and between employees and the company are recognized to be associated with social capital of companies. As per the Resource Based View (RBV), focus has changed from outside factors of competitive advantage to inside company resources, which has added legitimacy to the human resource’s claim that people are strategically significant to company success (Sadatsafavi & Walewski, 2013). The criticality of human resources in producing a long-lasting competitive advantage is necessary for the strategic leadership and management. Observing human capital through the lens of RBV reveals the importance of human capital for creating competitive advantages as it is mostly the company’s most distinct resource and the means employed for creating and managing it could be complicated. It shifts and offers equal significance to human resource management system as a tool for creating competitive advantage from human capital. The human resource management system is like an invisible asset built into the organization. The human resource management systems and generalities that develop across time can be distinct to a specific company and may add to the making of a specific human capital pool success (Sadatsafavi & Walewski, 2013). The behavioral arrangements provide sufficient inducements to the workforce, along with the built environment to add to the varied list of human resource management tools for increasing the criticality and distinctiveness of the mechanism from which the human capital pool of the company is created. Additionally, the principles of RBV indicate that the value generated by a rare, distinct, and complicated resource pool cannot be copied for reproduction by the competitors (Sadatsafavi & Walewski, 2013). When discussing human resource for health, decentralization of power and resources is important but more than that, it is the challenge to set answerability procedures in place of those who take decisions and act, irrespective of the matter what rank they hold. Human resource management, quality and equity of staffing cannot change for the better if decentralization policies are not there to check accountability. Equally important are innovations in capacity building of all actors in framing efficient incentive measures (Lodenstein and Dao, 2011). Evaluate Three to Five (3-5) Functions of Human Resource Management in Terms of their Level of Support to the Health Care Field, and then select which One You Believe is the Primary Function in Furthering the Health Care Field Some major functions of human resource management that add to the healthcare field include use of technology, which is going to increase in future in healthcare. The increasing focus on technology is going to impact job profiles of employees. It would heighten the role of leadership to adapt to the changed environment. It is general opinion that good leadership helps in creating a better job environment with reducing retention issues and employees’ crunch (Berardino et al., 2005). The human resource professionals’ functions need to be based on the issues faced by them. Generally cited issue is related to shortage of nursing staff, leading to decreasing reimbursement rates, the effort needed to fulfill accreditation agency parameters and controlling medical errors (Berardino et al., 2005). Another issue is related to increasing costs that need to be managed. Cost cutting can affect the human resource policies and functions also. There could be various responses for implementing cost-cutting, such as through entering into contracts with suppliers to cut the cost of medicines, outsourcing to contractors, minimizing the use of temporary agencies, self-funding of staff health insurance, cancelling overtime, and providing intangible benefits (Berardino et al., 2005). Technology use has helped many a healthcare organizations in reducing down staff strength. Healthcare organizations are expecting cost reduction, while some organizations are noticing an increase in the cost due to introduction of technology. General impression of the medical professionals about technology use is that it betters quality and patient care but there has been no approximation of any indicators. A number of healthcare organizations find the big upfront investment in technology as a negative incentive to change-over into the new age of technology (Berardino et al., 2005). Another important function of healthcare human resource management is regarding creation of new job profiles due to recurrent change in jobs and employees’ portfolios caused by the introduction of latest technologies. Human resource professionals need to write job descriptions again and again, keeping a focus on changing job needs. Job descriptions should be evaluated each year. At the most, hospitals can meet twice-a-year to evaluate job descriptions, for example, the industry segments, such as home care agency needs to necessarily review job descriptions for visiting nurses. A long-term healthcare facility might need to add new jobs details for a wellness program (Berardino et al., 2005). Human resource professionals’ leading function is related to recruitment of employees. Hiring talent is not a simple and easy job function, as some skills are always in short supply. Human resource managers are supposed to manage this critical function where talent acquisition is a tough task, as it is not available. Most of the healthcare organizations have fixed specific schedules to tackle the issue of the shortage of nurses. Contacts with all the nursing staff of the region is one such way, employed by managers. They remain in touch with the nurses of the region through direct mail, which is followed up with an open house for hiring nurses. This function is called extra effort recruiting and this recruitment program so far has given positive feedback for hiring nurses (Berardino et al., 2005). There are other smart and economical ways of hiring nurses, such as word-of-mouth publicity of new job openings to the established community acquaintances. Government healthcare organizations relatively find it less complicated to hire nursing staff, which is perhaps due to the long-run benefits of government jobs (Berardino et al., 2005). As it is not always possible to hunt right talent, it is revealed that the leading cause behind non-hiring of nurses is that they are lacking in computer skills. Other drawbacks in talent hunt may include lack of basic communication skills, missing work environment, and maturity (Berardino et al., 2005). A number of other job functions in healthcare settings can become prominent, when issues related to compensation arise. These need to be reevaluated to make adjustments as per hourly pay rates. Absence from work, bad performance, scheduling methods, and overtime are some of the issues that add new responsibilities to the work load of human resource managers (Berardino et al., 2005). Analyze the Role of Human Resource Management in an Organization’s Strategic Plan Strategic plan of an organization cannot be implemented without the active role management by HR managers. Off late, it has become strategically very important to lead the market through competitive edge, which is not possible without active IT support. Let’s analyze one critical IT system process managed for reevaluation by the hospital management by Say et al. (2012). Although all job functions, as mentioned above are critical but with the changing time, better utilization of IT has become very critical job function, as healthcare industries have been criticized for not coming on the forefront in accepting IT. It is passing through a critical period for developing and deploying IT successfully. These new realities have forced to analyze the Enterprise Systems from the application perspective, as based on its theoretical analysis. It is capable of providing an extensive package of strategic, managerial, and functional advantages in the healthcare environment. Healthcare organizations have started to analyze the practicalities of using ES as a way to arrange the provision of top quality and wholesome patient care. Especially, one of the advantages of ES is that it provides better resource management in relation to assets and staff allocation (Say et al., 2012). Say et al. (2012) have researched to gather statistical figures for analysis purpose through two ES enforcement case studies at Alexandra Hospital in Singapore. Their research has enriched the ongoing research on ES for healthcare organizations to manage their resource portfolio and functions across the application of a healthcare information system in a hospital. From theory point-of-view, the Dynamic Resource Management Model of Value Creation was selected to be integrated with the Technochange Life Cycle framework (Say et al., 2012). To frame a new solution, a team was formed with the logic to synchronize patient workflow by mapping a patient process workflow with how patients go ahead from one “station” to the other at the DEM. (The flow of patients at and before DEM was acutely reevaluated.) Three steps were taken. First, the DEM design map was reevaluated to revamp procedure for patient changing place from one location to another. Secondly, the consultation procedure was streamlined by deputing a senior doctor (rather than a junior) at the trial stage and finally, an ES was provided to perform the electronic archiving of patients’ appraisals so as to support information exchange over departments. Across the BMU and Ward 13, a “just-in-time” Bed Management System (BMS), with the “pull system” to draw patients to the vacant beds, was implemented to reduce the waiting time. It was dissimilar to the prevailing “push system” where the DEM pushes patients to the wards after checking up the wards for vacant beds (Say et al., 2012, p. 589). To start with the BMS testing, Ward 13 was selected for its technology preparedness and the complicated patients’ profile. More significantly, Ward 13 was a multi-disciplinary surgical ward with more than routine patient turnovers. Hence, it was zeroed-in as a testing place to examine the impacts of the BMS and its worth to boost performance of bed turnarounds (Say et al., 2012). The whole project of ES implementation was evaluated with the active involvement of managers for finding loopholes, incessantly boosting the morale of the employees for offering better ideas for a nicer patient experience at the healthcare facility and for advocating the application of their ideas (Say et al., 2012). References Berardino, L., Little, B., & Welker, J. (2005). Human resource management issues in healthcare technology. Allied Academies International Conference Proceedings: Academy of Health Care Management, 2 (1), 1-5. Retrieved from: http://www.alliedacademies.org/public/proceedings/Proceedings16/pahcm-2-1-memphis05.pdf Lodenstein and Dao. (2011). Devolution and human resources in primary healthcare in rural Mali. Human Resources for Health. Retrieved from: http://www.human-resources-health.com/content/pdf/1478-4491-9-15.pdf Sadatsafavi, H., & Walewski, J. (2013). Corporate Sustainability: The environmental design and human resource management interface in healthcare settings. Health Environments Research & Design Journal, 6 (2), 98-118. Retrieved from : Ebscohost database. Say, Y. T., Shan, L. P., & Anand M. R. (2012). Resource management activities in healthcare information systems: A process perspective. Inf Syst Front, 14, 585–600. Springer Science+Business Media. doi: 10.1007/s10796-010-9280-y Read More