This post is an automatic translation from a text written in Slovenian. Translation is generated with use of DeepL Pro tool. Original text is postaed and available here: https://paradim.si/category/slovensko-zdravstvo-2022-23/
The topic of working conditions covers a wide range of elements that affect both our work and our job satisfaction. When we talk about workload, overload and burnout, it is also necessary to address the adequacy of the assignment of responsibilities. This is the next part of the area of organisation that I am giving some more attention to in this note.
Taking responsibility, or the burden, the pressure of responsibility, with these additional words, can take on a negative connotation. However, responsibility is not a bad or negative thing. Being willing and able to be held accountable for an action or a deed gives us autonomy, independence, a sense of worth and self-confidence, and other similar benefits in life. All of these are necessary in the personal growth and development of an individual, but it is necessary that accountability is placed appropriately in the organisation.
Defining and delegating responsibilities
Properly defined responsibility is the starting point for personal growth and development and is the source of the positive, the eustress. Just as this situation has many potential benefits, the opposite situation has many significant dangers; in particular, it can be a great personal burden. We are talking about situations where we may be guilty of something that we either had no control or influence over, or where we are not sovereign (willing, strong) enough to be held accountable for the consequences of our mistakes. Such a situation is a source of negative distress and thus a significant source of psychological and emotional strain.
Coherence between responsibility and competence
If we want to create quality working conditions, we need to enable staff to be prepared for the responsibilities that await them in the performance of a given role. The first part of this is appropriate staffing, as it is our job to select the person to do the job who has either the necessary skills or the potential to develop those skills. The task then moves on to inducting and developing people: whether it is mentoring alongside the job, the opportunity to ask questions and receive other help in carrying out the task, or some other form of skills development. Work readiness makes the difference between a challenge and an obstacle; the difference between building confidence and developing insecurities and frustrations.
Matching responsibility with authority
There is also a continuation of the beginning of the previous point. Not only knowledge and ability, but also competence are indispensable for the performance of a task. In other words, if we are accountable for something, we need to have the formal power to carry out the task. If we want to build quality working conditions, we need to ensure that everyone has access to the information and other resources and tools they may need. They need to be given the opportunity to involve people if the task requires it. They also need to be given the time they need to complete the task.
Conclusion
The task of management is to design systems, and the task of management is to implement those systems. I know, and research shows, that healthcare highly values professionalism – the medical kind. It values quality patient care. Inconsistencies such as this in the inadequate definition of responsibilities are managerial unprofessionalism. The manager must address such shortcomings and do everything necessary to resolve such situations and to do so in a systemic way. Let managers and leaders be the ones who, through their professional work, ensure appropriate working conditions and enable the maintenance (and upgrading) of Slovenian healthcare in the future.
Paradim 