Term Paper on "Cut Down and Lay"

Term Paper 10 pages (3249 words) Sources: 8 Style: APA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

However, in the today's time, the nursing care has exposed additional importance because in acuity of patients has increased; thus, they require more intensive nursing care. While the facts and figures of layoffs and reduced hours of health care professionals have led increased potential threat to the quality of patient care. This concern has been raised by various health care providers that replacement or layoffs would only add the complexity of hospital inpatient caseloads with poor results and productivity (Fallon & McConnell, 2007).

Contemporary Review

Layoffs and trend of reduced work hours (that shift the full time employee to part time) in general management field and health care organizations has become a rising issue, which has come under numerous arguments, discussions and quarrels with deviating, contradicting and divergent opinions and perceptions.

According to some schools of thoughts retraining people is a far better idea and strategic approach in comparison to layoffs. This way the organizational performance is also improved and the employee is able to develop and enhance other skills that facilitate them in performing in other roles proficiently. Besides, these people also believe that layoff is a short-term solution to the operating budget of the financial stress or crisis and can become a bigger problem in the long run. It has also been proposed that costs associated with the retraining of the existing employees would be lesser when compared to the costs related to layoffs (Herman, 2012).

Loyalty and increased productivity with better performance is also the result from the employees when they are not laid off or shifted from full time employee to part time employee. The experts have advised that the employee turnover would also decrease as a consequence due to the fact that the nursing facilitators would have high morale. In addition, the health care professional would not be stressed from the threat of layoff or excessive workload. Moreover, they would be in a better mental condition to perform their maximum with adequate concentration levels (Herman, 2012).

According to some schools of thoughts health care organizations are not making considerable contribution to prevent or thwart the issue of layoffs and cut down of hours within the health sector. In fact, this issue is being widely practiced by a significant proportion of the health care institutions in order to save their budget so that they can put more efforts on nursing care to the patients. However, the issue of layoffs can be curbed from the development of various programs, strategies, policies with respect to the job security of the health care professionals. The retraining sessions, understanding the needs of the staff, gaining an insight on the harmful impacts of the issue on patients, and maintaining the quality of patient care would definitely help in curtailing the grave issue of layoffs in the health care organizations (Herman, 2012).

Success Cases or Programs

Layoffs, as mentioned earlier, have become a prevailing and serious concern for almost every organization, irrespective of the industry or field in the today's fast paced world where the people are surging ahead. However, the prevention programs and alternative strategies related to the mentioned issue have been designed and implemented by quite a few organizations (in the healthcare industry) in order to thwart and avoid such situations. Many of these strategies have been empirically tested, which has evidently provided results with varying degrees of success within the health care organizations.

From one of the cases, it has come to notice that few of the hospitals are implementing Lean Management practices which was designed and initiated by an organization of the management field. This methodology is designed with the principal objective to reduce the costs. In other words, the lower cost would be derived from higher engagement from the employees that can make the institution an improved care facility center for the patients. With the implementation of this program, the hospital saved considerable amount without losing any employee. Participation and engagement of the frontline workforce and health care providers is the core dependent element on which the improvements are based. In fact, the results of the empirical testing have clearly indicated that this approach and methodology has improved processes with increased productivity to a substantial percentage (Graban, 2012).

Another case that undoubtedly brings the fact to the forefront that restructuring the business segment or unit is one of the effective alternatives that can save the costs of layoffs. Several components of company's business need restructuring, for instance, shut down of obsolete plants or branches or improving the internal processes and so forth. The empirical investigations also highlight the fact that the process of restructuring produces results but usually takes longer time to prove the effects, whereas cutting down hours of employees or layoffs demonstrate rapid results but they are not effective in long-term. Indeed, the layoffs and increased unemployment results in reduced productivity. Therefore, few of the recognized management companies believe in slower method (that is restructuring) of flourishing the business as well as preserving the company's significant assets (employee) (Reh, 2012).

By looking at the third event of prevention strategies of layoffs, it has come to notice that many of the health care institutions are practicing the revisit of staffing cost. This strategy and approach is implemented with the fundamental objective to ensure the appropriate amount of balance between the productivity and efficiency of the health care provider. Reorganizing the hospital structure is the core focus area due to which the management reassesses and reevaluates the positions of the health care provider in order to ensure that the organization is not under or overstaffed (Oh, 2010).

The case studies presented have clearly revealed the fact that even though the issue of layoffs and cut down of hours exists, yet strategies and programs result in different degrees of success of the implementation of prevention programs of layoffs and reduced hours.

Practical Recommendation

The literature review and the success case studies noticeably exhibit the fact that although layoff and reduction in hours has become a widespread and an increasing; nevertheless, effective measures can be implemented by the management of the health care institution in order to prevent or alleviate such issues. However, a few recommendations with respect to the subject matter of the layoffs and shifting trend of work hours are as follows that can facilitate the top level management in halting or resolving the issue:

The budgets that are set for the employees and health care professionals ought to be evaluated and reviewed periodically and in a timely manner by the management that can keep a check and balance with the current economic conditions of the country. This would ensure the employees that their existence (in terms of their productivity, effective output, morale, increased concentration and attendance) is substantial to the organization.

The retraining of employees that can help them build additional skills and capabilities to perform other jobs and tasks is another substantial aspect that can come under consideration. This approach would condense the fear of being jobless amongst the health care professionals and they would perform in a more productive manner with increased level of concentration. Absenteeism would also be a factor of elimination.

Since the layoffs and reduction in hours usually impact the normal workload of the health care providers, thus, the management should consider this aspect with gravity. This is imperative because the excessive burden of the work and mundane tasks comprehensively develops the factor of stress amongst the health care provider due to which he or she can fall for multiple physical as well as mental disorders, and hence the quality of nursing care provided to the patient would be affected.

Communication is one of the approaches that can help the management can become cognizant of the needs of the health care facilitator. Furthermore, communicating and distributing the policies to the employees and medical staff from time to time is also one of the proposed strategies that can be implemented by the health care organizations, so that the employees feel more safe and secure. Indeed, the employees would then have a clear guidance on what is expected from them.

Conclusion

To put the entire report in a nutshell, it can be well stated that issues such as layoffs and cuts down of hours is turning out a severe and serious issue within the health care institutions on a broad spectrum, which is not confined to this industry but management fields are equally witnessing this issue on a large basis. As the problem is being increased, the solutions are also being initiated and launched.

Even though the layoffs and reduction in hours have become a gargantuan issue in the contemporary world of economic flux, yet quite a few health care organizations are implementing and promoting strategies that can help them in preventing the issue. The success cases have also pointed out the fact that prevention programs and strategies are effective and efficient means to keep up the morale and productivity of… READ MORE

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