Strategic Human Resource Management Of Volunteers And The Link To Hospital Case Study

Strategic Human Resource Management of Volunteers and the Link to Hospital
Patient Satisfaction

Introduction

Hospitals have focused their hard work on providing high quality patient care while aiming to reduce costs. One of the key indicators of hospital performance is patient satisfaction. There is an indication that hospital volunteers may be able to enhance patient satisfaction. (Brent Hotchkiss, et al., 2009) Found that the great use of volunteers was related to higher patient satisfaction scores. The volunteer-patient relationship is not well understood An examination of the volunteer-patient satisfaction from the perspective of strategic human resource management theory, a perspective in business administration scholarship is taken
W hile on the other hand, organizations concentrating on quality- maximization viewed labour related expenses as investments that enabled the production of high-quality goods and services. Similarly, it has been proposed that hospitals with a primarily high-quality strategic orientation would tend to frequently use commitment-enhancing volunteer resource management. By providing specialised training for volunteers and paid staff on methods of working together in order to deliver high-quality patient services (the volunteer management
Conclusion

Associations were found between hospital strategy and volunteer resource management, volunteer attributes and patient satisfaction. Based on findings it can be suggested that volunteer management and hospital outcomes are positively associated.

There is however little quantitative evidence to suggest a link between volunteer resource management and outcomes. The research has suggested that although organisations reflect a strategic orientation, does it mean that a cost reduction orientated hospital should rather accept relatively lower commitment, however the contrary has been indicated to provide that organisational strategies may create operational dynamics which are ‘pull’ or ‘push’ volunteer resource management.

There is a clear indication for the need for volunteer directors in high commitment volunteer resource management to provide clear directions and instructions. In concluding the results reflected that between strategic human resource management literatures that volunteer motivation to perform was not positively associated with organisational outcomes.