Conflict Management in a Healthcare Facility

Conflict Management in a Healthcare Facility

Conflicts can arise in any relationship, and the health care setting is no exception. Conflict resolution is a negotiation, compromise, and mutual understanding to solve problems arising between individuals and groups in the workplace. A conflict can create tension and disruption that may impact patient care and safety. Conflicts are inevitable when dealing with patients, families, staff, and administration. They may occur during routine care activities or suddenly during a crisis when there is no time for resolution (Amsler, Martinez, and Smith, 2020). The nurse must identify the different types of conflicts to assist those involved in resolving them within their comfort zones. This paper seeks to discuss conflict resolution in health care facilities, which determines the doctor-patient relations based on the disputing systems, challenges faced, approaches, and strategies in managing disputes.

Designing Disputing Systems

The process of designing disputing systems is a process that involves the design, development, and implementation of a system to enable the resolution of disputes among healthcare providers and patients. The main goal of designing disputing systems is to ensure patients receive quality care promptly. The process of designing disputing systems is not an easy task. It requires a lot of research and analysis before being able to design a system that will be able to handle the different kinds of disputes that can happen in a health facility. The designing process also includes explaining what kind of dispute should be handled by which system and how they should be handled. The designer must also ensure that the system they are designing can handle all disputes effectively and efficiently (Sergeeva et al., 2020). The system’s design must consider the relationship between the parties, their goals, and the types of disputes they will encounter. It should also consider the resources available to each party and their ability to communicate. A critical factor in designing disputing systems is determining who can access them. For example, if an organization has only one computer in its conference room and three people need access at once, then it would be possible for those three people to sit around the computer together and solve their dispute without having an effective way of communicating with each other. However, if they were all using separate computers, then they could not access their files and could not easily share information about what had happened or what needed to be done next. Another critical factor in designing disputing systems is determining how much control each party should have over the process (Liddle, 2017). This can be determined by looking at past experiences with similar situations and consulting third-party experts specializing in these problems.

The Challenges Faced When Designing Disputing Systems

The designers must understand how each system works to choose the best one for their organization. For example, if some patients have problems with their doctor’s bills, then it is best if those cases are handled by the billing system rather than another one that handles other types of cases as well. In most cases, lots of data must be input into the system to work correctly so it can generate reports based on those inputs. This means someone with experience working with databases or data inputting devices needs to be someone. Moreover, patients are usually entitled to a certain amount of time for their appointment. However, some cases may require them to wait longer than usual. In this case, the health facility must ensure enough staff is available to accommodate the patient’s request. If too many patients are waiting in line, it will create more stress and anxiety for the staff members working at the facility (Boichenko et al., 2022). To avoid affecting other patients’ schedules, the workflow for accommodating these patients needs to be planned and effective. Patients are often asked questions about their medical history and well-being during a medical checkup. This process can be stressful for both parties because if one party feels uncomfortable answering questions, there may be a trust issue, and their doctor-patient relationship could deteriorate. For this reason, doctors must not overstep boundaries when asking questions about their patients’ personal life or current situation.

The Current State of the Organization

The current state of the organization in handling designing disputing systems is that it has the policy to handle disputing through the office of the chief executive officer (CEO). This is because there is no specific department that handles disputing. There are two reasons why this type of system design would be beneficial to our organization. First, having a single authority for handling disputing can ensure that all disputes are resolved correctly and efficiently. Second, having one authority for handling disputing will have fewer conflicts between different departments and people within the same department (Marchetti and Tocci, 2020). However, based on our findings and analysis above, there are still some problems with this current system design. First, all employees can’t bring up their grievances at any time they want because they must go through channels before they can file a complaint or raise an issue with their superior. This means that people may hesitate to speak up when they see something wrong happening around them or when they feel that something needs to be done about something they feel needs attention. Second, there is no proper mechanism to handle disputes, resulting in a lot of time wasted by patients and staff filing their requests, waiting for resolution, and then filing new ones. The main reason for this system’s failure is that too many complaints are filed daily, so it cannot be processed effectively and adequately. Another problem is that there are no clear guidelines for handling complaints, so every employee handles them differently, leading to confusion among patients and staff. The third issue is that when patients complain, they do not receive any information on what occurred or how they can rectify the situation (Boichenko et al., 2022). This makes it hard for them to understand what happened and what needs to be done next. Lastly, there are many problems with communication between departments within the hospital and patients and their families or guardians.

Approaches for Managing the Resolution of Conflicts.

The approach to conflict resolution in health care is not just about how to avoid or manage the conflict. It is also about how to deal with and prevent future conflicts. Conflicts can be resolved through several approaches, including:

1. Confrontation: This is where one party stands up and confronts another party, often in a public forum. This may occur within a health facility setting or between two people who do not work within that setting. Confrontation can be counterproductive because it increases tension and anger, leading to more conflict (Rogers et al., 2018).

2. De-escalation: De-escalation involves using nonverbal communication skills such as eye contact, facial expressions, and body language, as well as verbal skills such as tone of voice and pacing to diffuse a situation before it escalates into an argument or confrontation (Filella et al., 2018).

3. Resolution: Resolving conflicts requires finding common ground between two parties involved so that they can come up with solutions that work for both parties involved in the conflict; this requires negotiation skills in both parts of the negotiation process.

Strategies for Minimizing Conflicts

The following are some prevention strategies to minimize the threat of conflict with colleagues, clients, customers, and vendors:

One way to prevent conflict is by creating an environment where employees feel comfortable discussing issues that might cause conflict. This can be accomplished by encouraging open communication among staff members at all organizational units. It also helps if there are policies regarding how employees should address conflict situations. Another way to prevent conflicts is by setting clear expectations for each employee’s role within their organization or department. For example, suppose each employee understands their responsibilities and what it takes to do their jobs well. In that case, there will be less potential for misunderstandings or miscommunication between co-workers that could lead to disagreements or problems with other colleagues or clients (Filella et al., 2018). Thirdly, inappropriate complaints should be handled professionally by discussing them with the person who made the complaint so that the parties can determine whether or not there is the truth behind it. If there is the truth behind it, they need to investigate further until you find out exactly what happened. If there was no truth behind it, then the role of an employee or manager is to make sure that this does not happen again and that the employees or workers understand what their responsibilities are as well as their rights when working at the facility (Amsler, Martinez, and Smith, 2020). Lastly, any form of harassment should always be avoided because it can cause severe damage to both parties involved.

Challenges of Managing Conflicts.

In health care facilities, it is not uncommon for there to be conflicts between doctors and patients. There are various reasons for this, such as differences in opinion over treatment or health care decisions and misunderstanding of each other’s beliefs, values, and expectations. There are additional circumstances under which patients might be unable to express their choices or requests to the physician. To address these issues, both parties must be respectful on their part. The first challenge doctors face in managing conflicts with patients is to resolve them as quickly as possible without causing any harm to either party involved (Rogers et al., 2018). They must communicate effectively with patients to understand the problem and how best they can solve it. It would also be helpful if doctors could establish rapport with their patients to get more information about their health status and understand more clearly what they want from their doctor. In addition, doctors should provide clear instructions on how they expect their patients to behave while at the hospital to avoid misunderstandings later. The second challenge doctors face is conflict situations between themselves and other staff members, such as nurses and technicians who work together in an institution. The third challenge of managing conflicts is to identify them before they occur. To do this, the nurse must recognize the signs that lead one to believe that a conflict is brewing and develop strategies for dealing with it before it becomes an issue (Liddle, 2017). The second challenge is to know how to respond when a conflict does arise. This involves understanding what type of behavior is appropriate for each situation and being able to act accordingly. Finally, since no two circumstances are the same and each situation calls for a reaction from all parties involved, nurses must have a strategy to handle potential conflicts that may emerge throughout their careers.

Conflict Resolution Policy

Defining “conflict” should be considered the first factor when creating a dispute resolution policy. This will help determine what situations should be avoided and what situations should be expected. For example, if a patient has been brought into the emergency room because he was involved in a car accident and injured, then there can be no doubt that conflict exists between him and his doctor. In dealing with conflicts within health facilities, it is essential to remember that there are two sides to every story: those telling it and those listening. First, doctors must understand that patients may have good reasons for what they say; therefore, doctors should never assume anything about an incoming patient’s behavior or motives without concrete evidence. Secondly, the conflict resolution policy should be developed in light of the primary goal of the health facility. This could create a safe, comfortable environment for patients and staff members to work in. The policy should also address safety, confidentiality, and patient rights issues. The nurse’s role is one of service delivery in which she acts as an advocate for her patients. She is responsible for providing education about their condition or diagnosis and what treatment options are available to help them recover from their illness or injury. Nurses also provide emotional support during this time. Patients need to know they can trust their nurses with their well-being when sick or injured. Resources for resolving disputes are the third factor to consider. This includes not only financial resources but also human resources such as legal counsel and expert witnesses. In addition, it is essential to ensure that all parties involved know their roles and responsibilities regarding the patient’s care. Finally, it is crucial to ensure that all parties involved have a functional communication mechanism.

Conclusions and Recommendations

In conclusion, the need for conflict management in health care facilities is as old as the institution. Conflict can be described as a situation where two or more parties seek to reach or maintain different goals. However, not all conflicts are bad or even wrong. Conflicts arise when people disagree on how to achieve their goals. Conflict management is a process that provides guidelines for dealing with conflict and helps resolve it without harming others or the institution. The objectives of conflict management are: to prevent the escalation of conflict and develop practical solutions to minimize the likelihood of future problems. Therefore, it is recommended that the doctor-patient relationship conflict management be done to prevent it from happening again. Before the issue worsens for the patient or other employees, they must be able to control it. To avoid further consequences on their lives or future contacts with other patients and staff members at their institution, the two persons involved should attempt to address any disagreements as promptly as feasible. As a result, the patient should be able to grasp what the treatment comprises, how long it will take, what is expected of them, and when it is expected of them.

References

Amsler, L. B., Martinez, J., & Smith, S. E. (2020). Dispute system design: Preventing, managing, and resolving conflict. Stanford University Press.

Boichenko, M., Shevchenko, Z., Rylova, O., Karpenko, I., & Guzhva, A. (2022). Conceptual levels of managing gender conflicts in the field of education in the framework of sustainable development of society. In SHS Web of Conferences (Vol. 141, p. 03013). EDP Sciences.

Filella, G., Ros-Morente, A., Oriol, X., & March-Llanes, J. (2018). The assertive resolution of conflicts in school with a gamified emotion education program. Frontiers in psychology, 9, 2353.

Liddle, D. (2017). Managing conflict: a practical guide to resolution in the workplace. Kogan Page Limited

Marchetti, R., & Tocci, N. (2020). Conflict society: understanding the role of civil society in conflict. In Conflict Society and Peacebuilding (pp. 11-40). Routledge India.

Rogers, N. H., Bordone, R. C., Sander, F. E., & McEwen, C. A. (2018). Designing systems and processes for managing disputes. Wolters Kluwer.

Sergeeva, M., Simonova, N., Lukashenko, D., Pryazhnikova, E., Volkova, Y., Samokhin, I., & Rozhnova, T. (2020). The technology of pedagogical conflict management within an educational institution. Revista Inclusions, 217-228.