the best it can possibly be . It ’ s important to share that vision with the rest of your team . But how can you get them excited about your vision ? A leader must get to know their team and understand their needs and their aspirations . What is their passion ? Why are they working as SPD technicians ? A leader must also increase morale by providing opportunities for growth . Technicians should be able to develop their skills , pursue new career paths , and participate in meaningful projects . This will motivate them to get involved and take ownership of their work .
Empower the team
To transform processes and ensure success , we must first empower our team . When we involve the team in brainstorming process improvements , they are likely to engage as they will have to live with the results of the process changes .
It ’ s important to involve our staff in projects that give them an opportunity to contribute . They will feel a sense of ownership when they have the power to act on decisions and access to adequate learning opportunities . Does your staff know your vision , and do they understand it ? Are they excited about it ? Make people understand that they are valuable and that they make a difference .
Always lead by example
When we are in a leadership position , we are under the microscope . Everything we do sends a message to our team or teaches them how to behave in specific circumstances . For instance , if we , as manager , are never on time , the team will see this behavior and mimic it . If we are continuously failing to adhere to the rules or guidelines that we have established , we cannot expect our team to follow them either . We must walk the talk ! The only way that we can overcome the challenges that we encounter in our SPD is to lead by example . We should educate ourselves , attend conferences , read , and share professional journals with our team . We should also share our knowledge with our team and encourage them to do the same . A good way to do this is to hold team meetings where we collectively share new learnings from journals and conferences . This exercise will give the team confidence and if they are confident , they will feel good . If they feel good , they will be productive .
Rewards and incentive programs linked to performance
Since SPD functions are fast paced , it may seem that everyone ’ s productivity is optimal at all times . Yet at the end of the day , the technicians working late shifts often must take on the responsibility of clearing stacks of trays and assembling instruments for the next day . As managers , it is our responsibility to determine the cause for the backlog and to remedy the problem . If the department owns an instrument tracking system , the task is as simple as generating individual reports listing the task and trays each person produced . But capturing this data manually requires a bit more work . Regardless of which process is utilized , it is critical to determine the productivity level of the department and each individual within the department . Once a baseline is established and goals are set , you can begin to work on preparing a rewards and incentive program linked to performance . Don ’ t know where to begin ? Start here :
• Let the team know which performance metrics will be used to earn rewards and incentives . Some examples include : perfect attendance , zero quality errors , customer accolades , number of trays produced ( if using this metric , ensure that it doesn ’ t only account for small sets ).
• Clearly communicate expectations and ensure the team understands them .
• Provide useful rewards or incentives . You don ’ t have to purchase expensive gifts to create a rewards program that your team will love . For instance , in one of my SPDs , we used to get $ 20 train / bus passes since most people utilized public transportation . This was one of the most popular rewards among the team . We also offered cafeteria vouchers and the opportunity for employees to suggest reward ideas . Our rewards were presented in monthly celebratory team meetings with soda and cookies , where rewards were presented . Each shift supervisor picked winners for the month based on the statistics . The winners were featured on the department bulletin board for the whole month .
• Create friendly competition between shifts to boost productivity and increase morale . For instance , my SPD had a competition to see which shift had the fewest errors . We printed each shift ’ s statistics and declared a winner during the monthly team meeting . Everyone looked forward to learning who the winner was , and everyone worked hard to make sure their numbers reflected their efforts . Another competition that we had among shifts was for customer service . Each shift was trained to ensure our customers were 100 percent satisfied and returned that satisfaction with written accolades . This encouraged individual team members to ensure that customer needs were always met .
• Keep up the energy in the program . You must continuously refresh the rewards , reassess criteria , and monitor progress . Never reward underperformers as it will tarnish the integrity of the program . Include team members in the judgement of winners . An incentive committee within the department can deter thoughts the manager always chooses their people .
The leader who makes a difference
A leader helps the team gain competence , confidence , and self-esteem by constantly building paths for their success . We must inspire our team to dream of success and coach them to achieve it . Utilize teaching methods that can help them understand the process better . Utilize visuals to help avoid errors , prepare standard worksheets that show how to do the sets and include diagrams that would make the job easier . Become the team ’ s main cheerleader and celebrate each accomplishment , big or small . Remember , “ Leadership is a relationship , founded on trust and confidence . Without trust and confidence , people don ’ t take risks . Without risks , there ’ s no change . Without change , organizations and movements die .” ( Kouzes / Posner ).
Mary Olivera , MHA , CRCST , CHL , FCS , has actively participated in the monitoring , surveying and training interdepartmental staff in the proper cleaning , decontamination and sterilization practices and has been highly committed to the standardization of interdepartmental processes . Currently , she is the president and CEO for OSPECS Consulting , LLC . a company dedicated to facilitating process re-engineering in healthcare organizations .