Workforce and its Impact on Quality

Although reliable processes are the foundation for improving health care, individual provider performance plays an important role in those processes. A strategic well-thought approach for maximizing staff performance is necessary. This strategy begins by developing and communicating a vision for clinical care. Emergency department leadership can then specifically characterize the content of 3 skill sets necessary for success: cognitive, technical, and patient experience. The content of these skill sets will then define provider expectations and performance measures. After communicating expectations and performance measures with the physician staff, it is critical to provide feedback, motivate staff through incentives and rewards, and hold them appropriately accountable for the care they provide. The interaction between leadership and staff throughout the process is essential for the outcome of quality health care.