Healthcare Engagement, Healthcare Transformation

The healthcare industry is facing an engagement crisis at a time when clinical and financial successes depend on highly engaged stakeholders - leaders, employees, clinicians, and patients.

When we examine top-performing organizations, we find those that sustain results and maintain high reliability have cultures of high engagement. When we consider how to achieve goals such as reducing turnover, increasing safety, reducing cost, and improving outcomes, it starts with a culture of strong engagement.

Engagement is the human dimension of performance improvement, and it is how healthcare organizations can deliver on our mandate to provide higher quality are at a lower cost.

Understanding Engagement

Engagement is doing what evidence suggests you ought to do even when no one is watching. A clear example of this is the strong correlation between hand-washing hygiene compliance and employee engagement.

For the past decade, healthcare professionals have reported metrics related to employee satisfaction, patient satisfaction, and even patient experience, which are valid and valuable measures. But, engagement is not the same as satisfaction. A patient can be satisfied because they are discharged from the hospital, but they may not be actively engaged in taking greater responsibility for their health.

Everything we do at Studer Group is centered on the understanding that healthcare professionals are values-driven people who want to do work that is purposeful, worthwhile, and makes a difference. In short, they want and need to be fully engaged.

Building Engagement

Consistent, authentic leaders who focus on alignment, take action, and hold people accountable can have a significant impact on engagement.

• Am I bringing out the best in my team?
• Am I creating the right environment to for employees, clinicians, and even patients, to do their best to achieve desired outcomes?

Like all change, engagement can't be forced. Leaders must create an environment in which stakeholders are not just doing things better, but doing things differently. Engagement starts with leaders, cascades to physicians and employees, and from there, affects patients.

The Engagement Model

Popular Engagement Resources