If you asked your team what they thought about you as a leader, what would they say? Anything positive? Would their feedback highlight areas where you could grow as a leader and manager?
No matter what industry you’re in, people are the most important part of your work. Without fulfilled and equipped employees doing the work, good work won’t ever happen. Humanistic management can help turn the tide and ensure that your SPD is filled with technicians who care about their work, their team, and the patients they serve.
What is humanistic management? It’s a management style that leads from a people-centric and people-focused mindset. Putting people first in every decision naturally leads to accuracy, efficiency, and profitability. And humanistic management in medical facilities leads to survival.
Here are three things you can do to embrace a humanistic management approach in your SPD:
Bring Employees into the Decision-Making Process
People want to participate in decision-making. They want to know that their voices are heard and valued. Even if you make the final call and end up choosing something different from what they suggest, inviting your technicians to share their recommendations shows them that you care about their opinions.
The next time you have a big decision to make, hold a meeting to let your team know what’s going on and invite them to share their thoughts on the best way forward. Keep them updated along the way and communicate the pros and cons of each option. Doing so can make it easier to get buy-in for whatever you decide.
Establish a Feedback Process
Just as technicians want to know that their voices matter in decision-making, they also want to know that they can come to you at any time to share their feedback. Some of your technicians might do this more naturally than others, so establish a solid process that welcomes everyone to share. This could be as simple as a monthly or quarterly one-on-one check-in to invite their feedback.
Provide a Growth Path
You probably have two different types of technicians on your team: those that are driven toward the next step in their career and those that are content remaining at their current technician level. Both are valuable. As part of the feedback process you’ve now established, make sure you learn the goals and hopes of each member of your team. Help map a way for those who aspire to climb the ladder. For those who are content with what they have, identify other growth opportunities—perhaps they want to learn a different role within the team or take charge in identifying and researching options for a new process or asset you’re bringing on board.
Humanistic Management in Your SPD
Humanistic management doesn’t just make life better for your technicians—it also makes life better for you. When your people know that you truly care about them, their success, and their careers (and they have proof that you do!), it’s easier to make hard asks of them like staying late, working an extra shift, or moving to a new process.
[1] See https://www.tso3.com/sterizone#resources
[2] See https://www.tso3.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/MK-0066_01_New-Standard-of-Care-for-Duo-Reprocess-Terminal-Sterilization….pdfCenters for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/infectioncontrol/
[3] See guidelines/disinfection/sterilization/other-methods.html#anchor_1554397475
[4] American Lung Association. https://www.lung.org/our-initiatives/healthy-air/outdoor/air-pollution/ozone.html#atrisk
[5] Evan Goulet, PhD, April 2015, Medical Device and Diagnostic Industry. See https://www.mddionline.com/why-manufacturers-should-consider-nitrogen-dioxide-sterilization
[6] PLoS One. 2015 Jun 22. See https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4476675/
[7] New Jersey Department of Health. See https://nj.gov/health/eoh/rtkweb/documents/fs/1376.pdf
