Question

Based on the results of below given research study, please explain following points;

Bansal, R. N., & Malhotra, M. (2016). A case study of motivational levels among personnel working in a government teaching hospital of Punjab. Biomedical and Pharmacology Journal, 9(2), 585-591.

• Explain diversity among hospital employees.
• Identify groups of hospital employees which have low motivation level.
• Explain reasons of low motivation among employees by applying motivation theories.

Explain the leadership traits and approaches hospital managers can use to obtain desired behavior from low motivation level employees.  

Answer 1

Diversity in the motivation levels among hospital employees are seen because of several factors that are mentioned in the paper due to the differences in working hours compared to the pay rate of each group, flexibility of work hours or the assignments, opportunities in career growth, absence of leaves or holidays, job description or satisfaction, a disparity between recruitment policies, etc. These factors create a difference between the motivational levels of each group of employees. Those who are satisfied show a higher level of motivation than others.

The group of hospital employees who have low motivation levels is the female nurses, followed by male nurses, followed by doctors, non-medicos while the highest being the paramedics.

Reasons for low motivation among employees can be explained by applying the two sets of motivation theories: Content Theories and Process theories. Content theories explain what motivates a person and concerns with the needs and demands of the individual, while process theory is based on how motivation works in an individual. Low levels of motivation can be due to poor performance, inefficiency, absenteeism, lack of courtesy, poor efficacy, and even self-determination. Content theories like Herzberg’s Motivation Theory or McClelland’s Needs Theory all explain that motivation would be low if the needs of the individual are not fulfilled. Process theories like Adam’s Equity Theory or Vroom’s Expectancy Theory explain that the motivation of an individual is largely dependent on the behavior and the choices made and the balance between the work and the rewards. If these criteria are met then a person shows high motivation.

The best approach of a hospital manager to obtain desired behavior would be to be more collaborative towards the low motivation level employees. Collaborative leadership in managers would effectively increase communication between the employees and the management, help them in involving the employees more so that they could make an informed decision. It promotes a synergistic work environment, promotes more understanding between the different cultures and provides a positive work environment. Also, transformational leadership is also needed in managers to step away from the traditional; orthodox practices to a more open and positive environment in the hospital.