Happy Employees Lead to Healthie...( Forum for People Perfor...),Health

Forum for People Performance Management and Measurement white paper examines link in hospital industry between employee satisfaction and patient care quality

NAPERVILLE, Ill., Aug. 5 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- While the nation's health care industry invests hundreds of billions of dollars each year in new technology and infrastructure to care for an increasingly aging population, its most important investment should be in its people, according to a new white paper published by the Forum for People Performance Management and Measurement.

The paper, "The Relationship between Employee Satisfaction and Hospital Patient Experiences," is based on extensive research commissioned by the FORUM, and conducted by The University of Wisconsin and Northwestern University at a major New York City hospital.

"In the health care industry, as in other service-related businesses, having engaged, empowered, loyal employees can lead to increased retention, lower costs, enhanced reputation, and a profitable business picture," said Forum President Michelle M. Smith, CPIM, CRP, vice president, business development, O.C. Tanner Company. "And now, we are finding that having satisfied employees leads to higher quality of patient care and overall better patient experiences."

Some key findings from the study, found at www.performanceforum.org, include:

• Patients that have higher levels of satisfaction are most likely to recommend the hospital to others when they are treated by highly-satisfied employees. Word of mouth, more than any other source of marketing promotion, is a primary driver in patient care decisions.
• As the popularity of electronic testing and monitoring expands, health care employees, m
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