Is your team’s performance causing you concern, and you’re worried that the quality of healthcare services will suffer as a result? If your team is not performing up to par, it could be due to a lack of shared teamwork responsibilities and values. This means you may need to build your team from the ground up to develop a new team culture and experience before it’s too late.
The healthcare setting is sensitive, and your staff’s team performance may determine the health outcome of the patients needing medical care. Therefore, you need to employ strategies to ensure your team performance makes a positive shift.
For one, it’s critical for the healthcare team to be highly motivated so tasks will be completed within the expected timeframe. In the healthcare setting, most tasks are time-sensitive, so optimising team performance is essential in delivering high-quality patient care.
If you’re wondering how to improve the performance of your healthcare team, this article is a must-read because it will walk you through proven strategies for achieving peak team performance. Take a look at the five tips below.
1. Conduct Teamwork Evaluations.
Teamwork assessments are critical in any industry but more so in the healthcare industry. They aid in identifying the team’s current strengths and areas for improvement.
Thankfully, you don’t have to resort to time-consuming pen-and-paper evaluations. You can conveniently conduct team evaluations using teamwork assessment software that measures the capability of both leadership and team members, team engagement, and safety awareness. It also gives valuable insights into organisational culture and psychological impact. This specialised software will assist your team in becoming a safety-oriented and high-performing team that provides top-quality patient care and support.
Furthermore, such an assessment tool will assist you in identifying issues causing poor performance. Knowing the underlying problem will help you find a suitable solution. The root cause of poor individual performance could be a personal problem, and you may need to encourage the team member concerned to seek therapy.
2. Hold Team Building Exercises.
It’s also critical to hold team-building exercises for your healthcare team. Team building exercises will help your team identify areas of mutual interest. Examples include prioritising safety, providing emotional support, and aiming for a positive patient outcome.
Therefore, it’s critical to create a team that shares the same work values and upholds a strong work ethic. Implementing a strategic team-building plan could help achieve these objectives.
3. Utilise New Technology.
Training your healthcare team to utilise advanced technology will most likely improve productivity and boost team performance. This may include using a mobile app to facilitate communication between healthcare providers, caregivers, and patients.
For example, your team could use a specialised solution to track medication administration. It’s more efficient than manually monitoring medication administration, where there’s a high possibility of human error that could affect patients’ health outcomes.
The use of new technology will enable your team to perform their tedious and repetitive tasks more effectively and efficiently, allowing them to focus on their more critical responsibilities.
4. Recognise And Reward Performance.
Who wouldn’t want to be recognised for their efforts? With a recognition system in place, everyone would be motivated to work harder, thereby improving their performance. Giving incentives can boost team performance.
If your budget allows it, consider rewarding the most productive team members weekly, monthly, or yearly. If your budget is minimal, you could consider mentioning the best-performing members in your facility’s journal or social media pages.
An employee recognition system will have a psychological impact on the awardee and the rest of the team, as they’ll be motivated to strive harder to receive the same recognition. So, whenever possible, adopt the strategy of giving recognition and rewards to encourage your healthcare team to perform at its best.
5. Recruit Highly Competent Individuals.
Your team members’ competence is another essential factor that significantly affects performance in healthcare facilities. Since addressing health problems and concerns requires the highest degree of knowledge and experience, it’s crucial to recruit the most qualified individuals to join your team.
Your recruitment process should effectively attract candidates with an impressive track record to ensure they can handle the job well and improve with time.
Conclusion
It’s critical to remember that your team’s performance primarily determines the quality of service you provide to your patients. Gaining insights into the causes of poor individual and team performance is valuable as it enables you to resolve these issues before they get worse. It’s also crucial to take advantage of advanced technology to improve productivity and boost team performance.
