Posts

Productivity in Healthcare

How is productivity measured in Healthcare? 

Aged care provides Healthcare for a growing population, with often an intense pressure to provide a person-centered focus for those who may or may not be able to express their own needs. Providing meaningful compassionate care in such situations reinforces the need for patience while each team member is under pressure to provide more care for more people with increasingly complex needs.

Digital systems which are fit for purpose and intuitive to use, are important as essential tools at the crossroads of time-poor aged care service teams and meeting the complex and often unstable clinical needs of those in their care.

Hercules Health INSIGHTS Dashboards are receiving strong endorsement from those using them. Not only do these Dashboards reflect health status of resident cohorts across a whole service, they also reflect areas of potential clinical risk and support workforce planning. They show where and when care team members are needed to align with the fluctuations in health presentation of residents in aged residential care. 

Displaying clinical data in a way that shows clinical care needs is simply one of the tools we support our clients with to be more productive and more effective. I think back to my days nursing on the wards in acute settings, or leading care teams in aged resudential care and marvel at what we can now achieve by bringing relevant data to guide care into this series of Dashboards.

The fun is also in exploring what else we can create to support this  sector. Watch this space!!

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Leadership of your team

Empathy and perspective are two concepts well known Leadership author Simon Sinek speaks about in relation to leaders. He talks about the real job of a leader as not being in-charge but taking care of those in our charge.  How many leaders play the blame and shame game when things don’t go as planned?  Instead how would it be if leaders in aged care services worked in accordance with a Leader’s Oath.  My version is noted below as an example.

You may want to create your own for your organisation, or adopt this.

The Leader’s Oath

I focus on the betterment of this organisation above my own career needs

I  focus on accountability above the need to be popular

I focus on caring for those in my charge over being in charge

I focus on clarity above certainty

I share clear expectations

I hold myself accountable for all employees poor performance including my own

I welcome respectful challenges

I will table the tough issues

I treat all interactions as though my career depends on a successful outcome

I am committed to personal and professional development

I am focused on excellence.

While the above Leadership Oath forms a focus for clinical leadership, it’s necessary to make sure your nurses are familiar with the ARRC funding agreement responsibilities for Registered Nurses. These are also clearly defined in the HCSL policies and procedures to ensure they’re integrated into practice.  The ARRC includes time-frames for nursing documentation responsibilities, while the nursing council guidelines for delegation define staff delegation of staff working under the supervision of Registered Nurses are appropriate led and supported. When we refer to tabling the touch issues, one key aspect of leadership is holding staff accountable.  Nurses are often not keen to hold others responsible for their conduct and performance and therefore avoid performance managing staff when performance is below the expected standard.  This in turn means the service provided will be below the expected standard.  If you want to provide the best care and support to those in your care, these are skills you must learn and put into daily practice. To learn more about these skills and others needed for leading a team of care and support staff, go here.

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