The concept of project management covers numerous industries. If you are an experienced project manager, it’s important to utilise your skills in the right areas. This means that sometimes we can all benefit from project management in less likely scenarios. This is why, for many people, the care home or health care environment can benefit from project management. But what are the benefits of project management in a healthcare setting?
Strong project management covers a number of disciplines, mainly using processes that have not been implemented before to provide better quality care. The great thing about project management is that it will cover a number of areas within a small care home environment, but it also works to improve the organisation’s approach. Whether it’s in relation to clinical distribution, medication, or ensuring that the staff members are more supported, having a solid understanding of how to implement better processes will provide better care.
Naturally, one of the best reasons we should incorporate project management within a care home setting is that staff members can be more productive. In a care setting, many members of staff can find themselves firefighting rather than operating with a regimented approach. When we incorporate effective project management, staff members can feel more in control of their workload so they can deliver better results.
A care home environment is unfortunately ripe for ill-conceived approaches to productivity, predominantly based on the person leading the shift. Unfortunately, the person that is in charge of the shift can tend to be an individual who has just been there the longest or holds the highest rank. This doesn’t mean they are necessarily beneficial to the role. And if we were to have someone with a more project-oriented mindset this will be beneficial to overall productivity where people are working smarter rather than working harder. Burnout is incredibly common amongst staff members in a care home environment, which is why project management can help to streamline so many different methods.
Communication between healthcare staff is not always as good as it should be. Arguably, this could be down to the lack of organisation within a care home framework. It could also be down to a number of antiquated practices, for example, using pen and paper rather than an electronic health care program. While every method has its place if you want to improve communication, having a solid system in place that everybody can access means that every member of staff has a better understanding of the big picture.
It happens so often that in a care home environment, staff members opt for a more immature approach. Arguably, this is down to the fact that many care home organisations seldom implement the appropriate reward systems for staff. However, when communication is improved, this results in a far better environment for everyone.
Project management is one of those things that needs to be looked at in a care setting. Do it right and it can make a massive difference to the overall operation.
