Chicago Business Litigation Lawyer Blog
There are some things that doctors can also not be immune to: conflict in the workplace. There is a growing recognition that professional behaviors and manners should not only extend to the patient. Rather, they should encompass doctor to doctor relationships, as well as others that work with them.
Having a safe and less conflict in a workplace promotes better professional life quality overall. This is because conflict creates opportunities to have less understanding amongst peers and undermines communication skills. Toxic workplace environments become stressful, negative, increase anxiety and give rise to professional burnout. This, in turn, affects the level of professional care delivered to patients and increases factors for the delivery of medical care with greater liability when it comes to malpractice suits. Better understandings lead to fewer misunderstandings.
Rather than fearing or avoiding conflict (as is often the case), it can be seen in some cases as a positive opportunity to better understand other points of view, to grow as an individual, and to improve communication and interactions within an organization.
Sources of conflict arise from expectations that were not set clearly, lack of resources, competition for goals, values or resources. For those reasons, identification of sources of conflict early on should be a goal of achieving a workplace culture that fosters respect and effective workplace engagement for all workers collectively.
Tips for managing conflict can include the setting the standards of expectation via an effective employee handbook. It must also be in compliance with state and federal laws and is always best if run past an attorney prior to implementation. Having an attorney to mediate disputes is always handy as well.
Avoiding conflict means issues fester and can place issues on a lower scale of measure. Time gets delayed and suits can follow. Continue reading ›