Throughout healthcare, from GP practices to every branch of the NHS, staff motivation is an essential part of fostering a healthy, positive workplace.
A lack of staff motivation increases burnout, reduces productivity, and puts patient safety at risk. A motivated healthcare team, on the other hand, deliver high quality work at a productive rate, experience less burnout, and feel more positive about their work. This in turn leads to better patient safety.
With the time pressures facing healthcare leaders, staff motivation is becoming increasingly difficult to sustain. Read on for some top tips on motivating staff in healthcare.
1. Create a sense of purpose
Meaningful goals and a sense of purpose are vital staff motivation factors. As a healthcare leader, taking the time to sit down with your staff and give every member of your team clear, achievable goals to work towards shows an investment in their career. Focusing on your team and their workplace development go hand in hand with improving staff motivation.
It’s also a good idea to involve your staff in establishing their goals. This will give the goals purpose and make them feel individual to each person.
2. Acknowledge achievements
Healthcare is a place where the work can be by turns rewarding and demanding. It’s incredibly important to ensure staff are recognised for their achievements and made to feel valued and appreciated.
The NHS has created a staff recognition framework, a guide to assist senior healthcare leaders and managers in motivating their staff by creating a ‘culture of recognition’. The framework explains the numerous benefits of recognition in the workplace, such as the positive impact on staff wellbeing and better staff retention. The article goes on to outline the various ways a culture of recognition can be established.
3. Create a positive workplace culture
A significant staff motivation factor is how positive staff feel about their workplace. Healthcare is a busy and often stressful work environment, but there are ways to alleviate this.
A sense of teamwork and belonging goes a long way to creating a positive workplace culture. Team-building activities, professional development outings (e.g. conferences), or even something as simple as a regular coffee morning between colleagues can make the difference between isolation and motivation.
In our Process Improvement coaching programmes, we work with you to create a tailored approach to improving staff motivation in your healthcare team. We tackle the unique issues facing you and your team to establish a solid, positive workplace culture.
4. Encourage open communication
Motivating staff in healthcare starts with ensuring staff feel comfortable to speak their mind at work – even about difficult issues. A workplace where staff feel uncomfortable speaking up or nervous about openly addressing any concerns they may have naturally leads to low team motivation.
By encouraging open communication in your healthcare practice, staff will feel comfortable discussing issues both with each other and with their leaders. This is beneficial to both staff and managers, as it means healthcare leaders will be aware of potential problems and can tackle them before they grow exponentially. A healthcare team that can communicate openly and honestly are a team built on trust, and therefore more motivated to solve problems together.
