Research Paper on "Improving Customer Service"

Research Paper 15 pages (4407 words) Sources: 15

[EXCERPT] . . . .

It is also evaluated to check its sense of fairness and that it is not a violation of any of the ethical principles. The last step is then to implement the chosen course of action.

The Team

The team which will lead this improvement in patient satisfaction rate will consist of 8 members. One will be the nurse manager who will be the overall and the "senior leader" for this process. he/she will be involved in supervising all members of staff of the medical-surgical unit to make sure they act in a way which complements the achievement of this desired patient satisfaction rate. The other 7 team members will be staff members of the medical-surgical unit chosen based on their experience in the team and their staff motivation level. The team members will then choose a vice-chair to deputize the "senior leader" and a secretary for the team to record minutes for all team activities. The secretary will also be involved in designing posters and other educational material to remind all nurses working in this unit about the importance of improving the patient satisfaction rate. The team members will have an additional monthly allowance that will act as a motivational factor to motivate them to lead the change. They will be meeting once a week on Wednesday during which they will discuss all relevant issues and institute the necessary procedures or changes.

Qualities of the "senior leader"

There are several qualities that the senior leader needs to possess. One is respect to other members of staff. The senior leader needs an inherent acknowledgement that each member of staff is a professional and that even though he or she is the overall supervi

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sor, the subordinates need to feel respected. Secondly, the senior leader needs to have the ability to set clear examples for the subordinates. The senior leader also needs to be well organized and to exercise flexibility and creativity at all times. Organization makes sure that there are clear rules by which the members of staff conduct themselves including shifts, deadlines, milestones, etc.

The senior leader also needs to be able to make decisions effectively and to resolve any workplace conflicts arising. The senior leader also needs to be able to motivate and empower their staff so that they feel valued and respected in the hospital. The senior leader needs to be honest, fair and consistent in their decision making so that the members of staff do not feel any kind of favoritism or discrimination. Lastly, the nurse manager needs to be an effective communicator. This involves them being able to pass information with ease and in a clear manner Sheridan, Vredenburgh, & Abelson, 1984()

Transactional vs. transformational leadership

Transformational leaders are those who lead employees through the intricate process of aligning the goals of the employees with those of the leader. Employees who are led by transformational leaders usually focus on the well-being of the company rather than their own individual well-being. On the other hand, transactional leaders are those who ensure that the employees of the company carry themselves with the required behavior that the right for the business in exchange of the leader providing certain resources in exchange.

There are four distinct tools which are in the possession of the transformational leaders. These tools are used to influence the employees and create a commitment of the employees with the goals of the company. The first is charisma. This is the demonstration of behaviors by the leader which inspire the values of confidence, admiration and commitment of the employees towards their leaders. Individuals who are charismatic are usually thought to have a 'magnetic' personality which appeals to the followers of the leader.

The second tool is inspirational motivation. This is where the leader comes up with a vision which is inspiring to others. The third tool is that of using stimulation of the intellect meaning that they challenge the norms of the organization and the status quo. This encourages the employees to give their best to the organization in terms of creativity and working hard. The fourth and last tool is where they use individualized consideration where the leader shows care and concern for their employees and their well-being in a personal way.

Transformation leaders rely on their charisma, personal appeal and persuasiveness to be able to institute change in their organizations and to inspire their employees to the achievement of their overall company or organization goals and objectives. Transactional leaders on the other hand use three additional methods in their leadership roles. One of the methods is that of contingent rewards. This means the rewarding of employees for their various achievements in the organization. The second method is active management by exception. This involves leading their employees to do their jobs without interfering in any way with them. However, at the same time, the leaders proactively predict any potential problems in the company or organization and they prevent them from occurring. The last method is that of passive management by exception. This is similar to active management by exception with the largest difference being in that the leader leaves the employees alone but the difference comes in the manager waiting till things go wrong before they step in to help.

Widespread research has shown that transformational leadership is more effective in organizations and it leads to greater satisfaction of the employees Judge & Piccolo, 2004.

The fact of the matter is that transformational leaders increase their follower's intrinsic motivation. They also increase the creativity and performance of their followers and increase the performance of teams. Additionally, they create higher levels of commitment to the efforts of changing the organization Kathleen Jennison & Stoltz, 2004()

The sponsor or senior leader should be a transformational leader. This is because there is trust formed between the leader and his or her followers. Trust in this case means the belief that the leader will carry themselves with integrity, and fairness and be predictable in their dealings with others. Research also shows that when leaders have transformational behaviors, they are more likely to be trusted by their followers Piccolo & Colquitt, 2006.

Research has also shown that the tendency to trust transactional leaders is extremely low. Since the transformational style makes the leader express greater personal concern for their followers, it creates trust between the employees and the leader Dirks & Ferrin, 2002()

Managerial attributes and actions to be employed

The senior leader or sponsor needs to apply delegation where they distribute the various tasks that need to be done equally to all his subordinated based on their qualifications and levels of experience. Secondly, the senior leader should have influence which enables them to guide their followers towards the achievement of their goals and to build trust by communicating in a way which is friendly. Third is negotiation where they should be able to identify the concerns of the subordinates and to be willing to find the best way forward that maximizes the result. The senior leader should also have goal-oriented and have a clear vision. This helps him or her to establish the criteria for success and to reinforce their performance goals. It also helps them to communicate the vision of the change to the subordinates in a way that gains their commitment.

Evidence-based practices

To improve the patient satisfaction rate, it is important to first understand the various aspects of provision of health care which make the patients feel that the healthcare they have received is insufficient. It is important to do a review of the events in the medical-surgical unit using a root cause analysis. Figure 1 below shows the results of one such analysis.

Figure 1: Root cause analysis of improper administration of IV medication

By reviewing the results of the root cause analysis, it is possible to institute 5 steps in the achievement of a higher patient satisfaction rate. First is to identify the opportunities available and then second is to prioritize them. Third is testing the most potential solutions for the problem then fourth is evaluating these potential solutions. Lastly is the implementation of the solution that provides the most benefit.

Another way to ensure that patient satisfaction rates are improving is the use of patient feedback surveys through forms. These are a high-level screening tool helped to provide detailed information on the root causes of dissatisfaction of patients. The patient feedback survey is designed to identify the opportunities for improvement of the health care provided then to use the decision making model to come up with the appropriate decision that fits the situation at hand Glickman, Baggett, Krubert, Peterson, & Schulman, 2007()

A drill down analysis will also help to generate an understanding of the capabilities, underlying factors, activities and other metrics which will be used in the detailed analysis to find the relationship between the various aspects of provision of health care and the patient satisfaction rate.

Among other things, the hospital should also have a compliments and complaints… READ MORE

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Quoted Instructions for "Improving Customer Service" Assignment:

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For this Application assignment, due by Day 3 of Week 11, you will examine an authentic workplace quality improvement need at the unit level and use data to support a specific quality improvement approach. You will apply a quality improvement model to your identified need, determine members of a quality improvement team, and identify a leader who will champion your quality improvement initiative. This Application Assignment provides you with an authentic learning experience as you walk through the steps of planning a quality improvement project.

To prepare: Focusing on quality improvement at the unit level—not at the organizational level—select one nursing sensitive indicator that is in need of significant improvement at your practice setting.

Remember, indicators can range from not meeting customers’ expectations to inability to fulfill organizational goals. You may wish to review the NDNQI indicators prior to beginning this Application.

Articulate a hypothetical or real quality improvement initiative that is specific and has a localized focus.

Analyze the culture of the patients and providers that this initiative will impact.

Determine processes that need to be implemented to ensure a smooth transition.

Consider the stages that the practice setting would go through over a nine-month time frame.

Examine data that supports the need for your improvement initiative and determine which quality improvement and patient safety tools would best represent the data (flow charting, cause-effect diagrams, control charts, root cause analysis).

Select team members for your quality improvement effort.

Identify who at your practice setting would be the “senior leader” or sponsor for meeting the improvement needs of chosen indicator.

TO COMPLETE: In a paper approximately 15–20 pages in length: Topic should be improving customer service on a medical surgical nursing unit.

Part 1: State the problem and mission in measurable terms; clearly state the unit of analysis.

Explain why your selected nursing indicator is a priority for your organization and support your selection with data.

Identify which quality improvement model best fits your nursing indicator and justify your selection with evidence from the research literature.

Detail the primary measurement that you will be utilizing, and the goal, in comparison to an external source (i.e. scores received by other similar health care organizations on your nursing indicator).

Synthesize strategies for managing any ethical dilemmas presented by the initiative.

Part 2: Describe the team: membership, roles, facilitators, background/experience, and motivation within, followed with an analysis of the leadership role of the sponsor for this project.

Document the team process: determine meeting frequency, ability to fulfill roles on the team, etc. As this is a simulation exercise, you will create this information using best practices as a guide.

What leadership qualities should this “senior leader” or sponsor possess?

Do you believe this sponsor to be a transactional leader or a transformational leader?

What managerial attributes and actions would this senior leader need to employ to ensure that the staff will buy into workplace changes?

Predict how the senior leader role will evolve throughout the quality improvement journey. Part 3: Formulate possible evidence-based practices and an action plan that could work towards achieving improvement outcomes.

Provide insight into the diagnostic processes (e.g., root cause analysis) used to determine the primary causes of the problem. Consider both qualitative (cause-effect diagram, barrier analysis), and quantitative (theory testing or drill down analysis) methods.

Analyze the cost-effectiveness of your initiative and how your initiative mitigates risk and improves health care outcomes.

Part 4: Summarize the impact of the team process on the nurse sensitive indicator.

Analyze monthly or weekly data points of the nine-month period.

Include a timeline that documents the various milestones seen from implementation to completion of the nine-month quality improvement model. You may use the quality improvement model of your choice (PDSA, DMAIC, Lean).

Demonstrate meaningful improvement utilizing a key metric such as graphs, control charts, or other valid statistical analysis capable of showing trends.

Part 5: Summarize the positive attributes of the team process in creating improvement.

Attributes can include, but are not limited to: motivation to improve, conflict and conflict resolution, change theory as applied to implementation strategy, negotiation, the role of senior leader in securing resources for the team, and other organizational and team dynamics.

How to Reference "Improving Customer Service" Research Paper in a Bibliography

“Improving Customer Service.” A1-TermPaper.com, 2012, https://www.a1-termpaper.com/topics/essay/improving-customer-service-medical/609773. Accessed 27 Sep 2024.

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