Brookwood Medical Center's Organizational Culture - Essay Example

"Brookwood Medical Center's Organizational Culture" is a good example of a paper on the health system.
Each and every organization has its own distinct culture that guides how organizational processes and practices are conducted. In fact, culture is intertwined with daily associations or interactions between employees (Dixon and Dougherty, 2010). For a nurse manager or leader, understanding organizational culture is imperative as it can help improve implemented programs. This paper offers an analysis of the culture of Brookwood Medical Center, how this particular culture contributes to the organization's ability to meet goals, and how a nurse leader or manager could utilize my knowledge of this culture to facilitate quality improvement initiatives within this organization.

Brookwood Medical Center's organizational culture  

In the field of social psychology, culture according to Bellot (2011) is defined as "a pattern of shared basic assumptions, invented, discovered, or developed by a given group as it learns to cope with its problems of external adaptation and internal integration" (p. 31), and hence ought to be taught and passed on to new employees. The culture in Brookwood Medical Center lies primarily on the tenets of social responsibility, collaboration, and teamwork. In terms of social responsibility, it is the responsibility of all employees in Brookwood Medical Center to align their activities with benefiting society. For instance, new employees are trained on ethical principles such as confidentiality of patients' medical records and respecting the choice of patients in regards to treatment. In terms of teamwork and collaboration, it is a tradition for all employees to seek the opinion of specialists in specific fields when faced with problems relating to treatment or provision of care. It is also a tradition for all employees to greet other employees in the hallways or in other places when they meet, and also treat them with respect.

How this culture contributes to an organization's ability to meet goals

One of the main goals of Brookwood Medical Center as explicated by Brookwood Medical Center (2014) is to provide high-quality care to patients. A culture of social responsibility means that the needs of society are put first. Treating colleagues with respect and dignity fosters teamwork and collaboration. This is in regard to the fact that employees that are treated with respect feel that they are part of a team and hence are able to engage with others in all aspects of the organization. Workers in an organization whose culture obligates all employees to treat each other with respect are more committed to the organization as they feel that they are valued members of the organization (Dorgham, 2012). In this perspective, a culture of social responsibility, teamwork, and treating others with dignity in Brookwood Medical Center helps in the attainment of high-quality care. 

How I can utilize my knowledge of this culture to facilitate quality improvement initiatives

Bellot (2011) asserts that organizational culture directs opinions and how activities are conducted, A culture whereby all employees are required to treat others with respect and greet them at the hallways can be construed as a means of encouraging communication. Using this knowledge, I can optimize open communication and the creation of social networks in an effort to do away with chains of command that may otherwise affect how information is shared. I can also use my knowledge of organizational culture in Brookwood Medical Center to create accountability policies. A work environment where employees are responsible for their own actions can facilitate quality improvement. In a nutshell, organizational culture guides how health care processes and practices are conducted. To ensure the continuity of organizational culture, new employees ought to be trained on all aspects of the culture within the organization. Aligning organizational culture with organizational objectives and goals helps facilitate quality improvement in health care.