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Operations Management plays a crucial role in healthcare for controlling the costs, improving the quality of care services rendered and enhancing patient satisfaction. In particular, Hospital Operations Management is essential to ensure that the right processes and practices are implemented in the hospital.

There are many related tasks with an overall objective of increasing the standards and building best practices of Hospital Quality Management. That includes:

Formulating the correct healthcare strategies.
Developing the required skills of the hospital staff to improve their performance levels.
Maintaining healthcare regulatory compliance.
Procuring the medical equipment and other resources for building the hospital infrastructure adequately.
Streamlining the hospital expenses and workflow.
Creating a sufficient source of fund for maintaining adequate service levels to meet patient demands and sustain the hospital business in the competitive market.

To achieve this, every hospital needs an efficient operations manager who acts as a liaison between the hospital employees, patients and their caretakers. Certain operation manager skills are essential for effectively overseeing the overall functioning of the hospital. The managers must possess the ability to manage the financial well-being of the hospital facility, implement the right policies and handle both the clinical and non-clinical staff.

Role of the Operations Manager

Managing the healthcare services by carefully handling all the functional and operational aspects of the hospital.
Doing adequate strategic planning to ensure that the hospital business is stable and forecasting futuristic demands of the related healthcare logistics.
Gaining sound knowledge of the healthcare domain, information technology, best practices of the industry and the latest innovations to maintain technological proficiency.
Developing and implementing operational policies and procedures and enforcing rules to ensure that patient safety and care ethics are not compromised.
Recognizing the latest trends in data and doing accurate forecasting for planning future projects and monitoring the day-to-day functioning of the hospital.
Assisting the Human Resource(HR) department of the hospital in recruiting candidates for various hospital staff vacancies.
Building an ethical and patient-centric culture in the hospital that encourages all employees to be top performers and execute their duties seamlessly with high morale.
Overseeing the various financial aspects of the hospital including budgeting, auditing, planning and reporting.
Being a good role model and mentor to the hospital staff by displaying strong leadership skills.
Ensuring that the hospital abides by all the pertinent healthcare rules and regulations by scrupulously fulfilling the legal formalities.
Fostering and maintaining a close relationship with the senior stakeholders of the hospital.
Working closely with the hospital senior management to formulate both short-term and long-term goals and determining the values, vision and mission in line with it.
Building lasting external alliances and partnerships with other healthcare organizations including hospitals, diagnostic clinics, therapy centres, pharmacies, medical and nursing colleges and research institutes.
Enriching communication and trustful relationships between hospital employees and the senior management.
Solving existing operational issues, gauging potential threats and opportunities for the hospital business.

Operational Manager - Required Skill Set

Educational background in Operations Management or related areas.
Good experience and interest in the field of management and operations.
Strong leadership qualities.
Thorough understanding of financial management and budgeting concepts like profit and loss, cash flows and balance sheet.
Excellent team-building and communication skills.
Robust strategic planning, analytical and logical thinking capabilities.
Ability for doing negotiation and building consensus and relationships amongst various stakeholders including hospital employees, managers and outside partners.

In short, the Hospital Operations Manager oversees the high-level HR duties like attracting and retaining the best talent, enhancing the workflow and internal processes and improving healthcare quality, staff efficiency and productivity. Healthcare Consulting Firms with their expertise and experience can help hospitals in recruiting the right candidates for this post.

In life, the only thing constant in life is change and this is especially true of healthcare. quality healthcare management can be achieved only if the hospital operations management adapts to the changes in the environment and industry. It is not a mere case of "change or be left out" but a more life-changing scenario where a small change can save or harm a patient's' life. To do this effectively, hospitals need the expert guidance of an experienced healthcare consulting firm. Let us take a look at some of the ways in which hospitals can adapt to change as advised by an expert healthcare consulting firm.

How to adapt to change in hospital operations management?

1. Plan the change
Change is often resisted in most organizations as it is seen as a loss. When even small changes like shifting the parking in a hospital are met with reticence by the staff, adapting to new clinical procedures or routines is even more difficult. These changes cannot be executed intently but planned in a phased-out manner with the help of the healthcare consulting firm.

2. Communicate the need for the change
A major factor that decides the success or failure of hospital operations management is communication. The reason why most people resist change is due to ignorance. Communicate the need for change in the hospital among the staff. Hold an interactive session with the hospital staff seeking their opinions on the pros and cons of implementing the change.

3. Educate, enlighten, involve
The best way to execute a change in the hospital environment is by first educating the staff on the need for change. enlightening them on the reasons for the change and involving them in the process of change.
The right way to perform the above 3 steps would be to organize a presentation on the change process and present it to the team. The healthcare consulting firm can help you to organize and implement this effectively.

4. Invite participation
In a hospital environment, the process of change has to be executed smoothly and seamlessly. To ensure that no hiccups occur in the changing process, the whole process of change has to be implemented in a streamlined and focussed manner. This can be done by inviting participation from the hospital team, encouraging their involvement and then outlining their responsibilities and goals.

5. Give time
To succeed, every process must be time-bound. But you cannot afford to hasten the process of change, especially in a hospital.

Advocate that the change is with benefits
What concerns most hospital staff is "how the change will affect me?". There is a deep-rooted fear that the change may call for overburdening of tasks, change in hierarchy, loss of authority, and even loss of the job itself. It is the prime responsibility of the hospital operations management to reassure the staff and advocate that the "change is with benefits". The hospital operations management must highlight the benefits of change to seek support for the cause. The takeaways of change for the hospital and for the individuals must be clearly outlined in order to bring a positive approach among the staff towards the change.

6. Monitor the change
It is not enough for the hospital to just kick start the change process. It is more imperative that the change is monitored to see that the goals for which the change was intended are met. This monitoring can be done effectively only by a healthcare consulting firm.

7. Seek feedback
With the help of the healthcare consulting firm, the hospital operations management can compile a feedback form and enlist the feedback from the staff on the process of change.

Adapting to change is the need of the hour for every hospital. Only a competent healthcare consulting firm can steer the hospital business planning through the waters of change and chart its course to the destination of success.

On analyzing the disease pattern in India, it was found that the infections acquired at hospitals were more in India than in the other Western countries. Hospital-acquired infections in India have a rate of 1 for every 4 hospital visits and this is an alarming figure. This demands the need for strict hospital infection prevention and control.

Every hospital is trying to devise strategies for infection control and the hospital operations management is trying to outline an infection control program. Here is an overview of some of the strategies for infection control followed by Indian hospitals based on the guidelines of the WHO.

Strategies for infection control at a hospital

Institute standard hygiene precautions at the hospital.
Outline additional infection control precautions to be implemented immediately.
Educate and train the hospital staff on hospital infection prevention and control.
Provide hospital staff with disposable gloves and masks and with sterilized surgical clothing and equipment.
Vaccinate the hospital staff in advance if necessary to prevent incumbent infections.
Protect the hospital environ from infections by implementing aseptic techniques for hospital hygiene.
Insist on using single-use clinical supplies like syringes, gloves, gowns, bandages, etc.,
Install an incinerator to dispose of the toxic medical waste that could cause hospital infection.
Insist on complete sterilization of patient beds, hospital wards, surgical instruments and equipment after each use.
Set clear standards for proper usage of antibiotics and precautions for exposure to body fluids.
Train hospital staff on the proper handling of body fluids and hospital waste to avoid contamination and hospital infection.
Monitor the hygiene routine continuously and set trigger alarms for non-compliance.
Have a backup plan ready to counter any hospital infection that might arie in spite of all these precautions.

10 steps to achieving hospital infection prevention and control
1. Washing hands
The first step in hospital infection prevention and control is to wash hands. WHO recommends washing hands with warm water and soap for 20 seconds before eating, drinking, and caring for patients. All hospital staff must be encouraged to follow this washing procedure before handling patients.

2. Institute an Infection control policy for the hospital
The Infection Control Policy is a contingency plan that every hospital must enforce to achieve hospital infection prevention and control. To do this, enlighten staff on which kind of patients could easily acquire and transmit hospital infection. Outline the precautions to be taken to prevent such occurrences. Elaborate on the isolation, quarantine and emergency procedures necessary to prevent the infections from spreading to the hospital staff and other patients.

3. Always check for quick hospital infections and exterminate the cause immediately
Certain hospital infections can occur and spread within the fraction of the eye. For instance, Clostridium difficile is a bacteria which is a rapid hospital contagion. Always check for this c.diff infection in diarrhoea patients and try to curb it immediately. One other such hospital contagion is the Flu virus which should be controlled ASAP a part of the hospital infection prevention and control.

4. Train staff regularly on infection control
Continuous education and training is a must for the hospital staff to be aware and on guard about the prevalent hospital infections. New epidemics are on the rise like Lassa Fever, Rift Valley Fever, Dengue, etc. The hospital staff must be educated on the symptoms and taught the precautions to handle such blood-pathogen infections or droplet-borne epidemics with readiness.

5. Insist on the compulsory use of gloves
Instruct all hospital staff to use disposable gloves while interacting with patients to avoid contact with infected body fluids. Gloves must be used even by the sanitation workers at the hospital while changing sheets, cleaning beds, emptying trash and sterilizing equipment. This is the simplest and most effective way to achieve hospital infection prevention and control.

6. Provide protective equipment to all the hospital staff
Protecting the hospital staff is the first priority to prevent the spread of hospital infections. Provide gloves, mask, shoe covers, face shields disposable waterproof gowns, etc for all the physician, nursing and sanitation workers at the hospital. Have isolation equipment ready to quarantine patients with contagious illnesses.

7. Insist on daily disinfection of the hospital premises
Ensure that all hospital premises including the nurse station, elevators, and reception desks are cleaned daily with a powerful disinfectant.

8. Wash and sterilize linens daily
All the linen at the hospital used by patients, nurses and surgeons must be washed and sterilized daily. Any cloth that falls on the floor must be immediately washed.

9. Prohibit patients from walking barefoot in the hospital
Provide disposable footwear to patients and insist that they do not go barefoot at the hospital in order to prevent infections.

10. Serve hot and hygienic meal for patients
Serve hot meals to patients and ensure that they eat them immediately. Dispose of uneaten food kept aside for several hours to prevent spoilage.

It is the foremost duty of every hospital to implement such hospital infection prevention and control measures as a part of their service to society.

The management of all sizes of healthcare practices have recognised the prominence of seamless patient flow at the hospital. In fact is the key for success and it has to be done just the right way in order to increase the efficiency and derive best results in terms of ‘Increased Patient Satisfaction’. Gone are the days when hospital used to depend on appointment and waiting-room process. The lives of people have become eventful and individuals expect seeing the doctor or any healthcare provider should not be time consuming.

The clinical practices should give greater importance to patient flow even from the initial stages of hospital planning. The patient bottlenecks causes unnecessary delays that take big toll on the overall patient experience.
Right from the reception, hospital management should ensure the patients and their assistants feel comfortable and the waiting period should be as less as possible. When they feel cared and recognized by the hospital staff, hospital is gained good respect and the patient experience is just enhanced!

However, despite maximum efforts it is not always as easy as it is said. Patient Experience increases over time and healthcare practices can achieve it by constantly evolving and surpassing all the obstacles. Here are few step that could help you in establishing seamless patient flow.

Internal Traffic Flow and Clear Idea of Operation Flow – Every staff member of the hospital, even at the bottom levels should be well aware of the patient flow and they should be able to direct the patients in the right direction. The patient flow stream should be focussed more on the patient convenience that provides better patient experience.
Ensure Diagnostic and Consultation Processes that Don’t Overlap – The diagnostic facilities should ensure proximity with proper signboards within the hospital area. Most importantly the diagnostic centres should not cross paths during the checking process. A faster consultation and diagnosis process make the patients to find solution for the ailments or sickness without any further delay.
Cover All Patient Touch-Points based on the Patient Health Condition – Hospital management very well know each health condition requires a separate diagnostic pattern. The healthcare provider should be aware and streamline the patient flow in such a way that all the touch-points are covered based on the health condition before moving the patient to a different department. Pulling back a patient for any test or consultation will result in negative patient experience, which the healthcare provider should focus in a meticulous manner.
Well Stated Patient Destinations and Flow Chart – It is important to have the infrastructure with clear and understandable signage. A clear blueprint of the hospital infrastructure stating which department located where along with the directions, avoid any sort of confusion within the reach. The waiting lobbies, consultation rooms, restrooms, diagnostic centres, cafeteria, pharmacy and billing section should be rightly placed and managed with clear signage.
Parking and Other Hospitality Facilities – For every hospital infrastructure it is important to maintain a free traffic flow. Both emergency and non-emergency vehicles should be aligned appropriately and ensure seamless flow. The emergency vehicles should have easy access to reach the trauma care department and to the other diagnostic facilities.

In today’s increased peer competition era among healthcare practices, it is highly important for all healthcare dreamers to ensure proactive support and care while touching all the essential touch points that increase overall patient experience.

There is an ever-rising population of patients that is increasing exponentially as various new diseases manifold themselves. This poses an interesting challenge to Heath Care Providers (HCPs), who not merely have to handle voluminous numbers, but are also forced to contain healthcare costs as related expenses soar. Therefore HCPs are currently on pressure to tackle this concern effectively more than ever and ensure cost-effective delivery of patient care.

Interestingly, in Healthcare Operations Management (HOM), Overhead Expenses (OHE) attribute to a significant portion of the Total Operating Cost (TOC) and that is rising at an unsustainable rate. Thus, certainly it manifests itself as a viable target for cost reduction. Hospitals which successfully minimize their operating expenses have an immediate competitive advantage over others who don’t capitalise on this. Handling cost reduction is imperative though it may be complex and stressful.

Some known contributors to Operating and Overhead Costs in Healthcare

Like any other domain, HCPs have certain operating expenses that are inevitable for maintaining continuum of their business. This includes regulatory compliance, governance, documentation of all patient records, billing, medical supplies, energy, rent/property charges, transportation, capital charges, maintenance of hygienic standards, appropriate waste disposal methods, and other non -medical staff expenses. These overhead categories certainly form a substantial portion of total healthcare costs though they may be unavoidable.

In order to retain their competitiveness, HCPs have to minimize avoidable overhead costs while simultaneously investing in high-value overhead expenses. It is noteworthy that the share of administrative and overhead costs varies significantly worldwide.

Strategies for enhancing Hospital Cost Reduction Efforts

• Clear Identification, Categorization and Tracking Mechanisms for all operating expenses - This is crucial for estimating accurately medical versus non-medical overhead expenses. Unless this is ensured, intervention measures deployed for cost reduction will be impeded. Also, making focused investments in overhead expenses for ensuring value-added service becomes intrinsically complex.

• Incorporating cost reduction ideas in administration: Minimizing operating expenses that don’t contribute to better patient-care though not all overhead costs are financial burdens, administrative expenses should necessarily be reduced as far as possible. This may be achieved by deploying centralization of non-medical functions, outsourcing facilities such as Information Technology, Staffing, Finance and Catering and using automation techniques.

• Making better use of Information Technology(IT): Administrative transactions and health IT initiatives should be digitised and integrated so all stakeholders can communicate in real time This along with latest IT methods as Cloud Computing, Telehealth, Telemedicine and systems as Hospital Management Systems(HMS), Patient Management Systems(PMS) enhances care delivery, efficiency and eliminates errors in cumbersome manual operations.

• Benchmarking and deploying efficiency practices from other industries: Best practices as good Inventory Management, Waste Management and Just in Time (JIT) techniques used in other service industries as Manufacturing may be utilized in hospitals also. This enhances cost efficiency for managing both overcrowding during peak times and declining ward occupancy rates.

• Streamlining operations: This can be achieved by carefully handling required intricacies of healthcare tasks by electronically recording and billing services and standardizing quality/safety initiatives of patient safety for better tracking.

• Diminishing redundancies in diagnostic testing: Adopting selective usage of laboratory testing and utilizing diagnostic equipment effectively to eliminate redundancy, lessen data volumes and ensure optimum medical equipment utilization.

• 360 degree involvement of concerned staff: Aligning cost reduction strategy with the hospital goal of ‘patient- centricity’, ensuring continuity of preventive healthcare programs and engaging all clinical/administrative personnel to collaborate fully in this endeavour.

Conclusion

By deploying smarter healthcare IT, minimizing redundant non-medical expenses and enhancing medical-staff involvement, hospital administrative costs may be reduced significantly without compromising on quality patient-care.

There are certain significant changes happened in the healthcare industry in the past years. Some of them are equip the hospitals with trending facilities, new inventions in medical care, increase in third-party payers such as government and insurance companies, availability of information through internet services, and much more. The common point of all these changes is ‘Patient Satisfaction’. Hospitals and other healthcare providers are in tough competition to provide enhanced value based quality healthcare to patients. The rule is simple, if a hospital is addressing a patient’s health issues comprehensively in a convenient and comforting atmosphere with the help of efficient medical staff and advanced equipment at an affordable cost, is lying down a path for patient’s satisfaction and can be the industry leader, soon.

Patient satisfaction is considered as the indicator for calculating the quality of healthcare services. It is capable of impacting the patient retention, outcome of clinics, malpractice claims, efficiency, and modern works and as well patient-centred monitoring. It can be the real thing that profoundly influences the success of both the doctors and hospitals.

Today, all the patients see themselves as the buyers of health services, and so there is a necessity to acknowledge every patient’s individual needs by putting extraordinary prominence on the delivery of quality healthcare. Quality treatment means, not just the treatment. It includes the way patient is treated from his admission to discharge from the hospital. Hence, hospitals houses many professionals from other sectors such as HR professionals, management graduates and quality analysts, who work for a common goal - patient satisfaction. Every player in healthcare industry has recognized that higher patient satisfaction brings loads of benefits in different ways in return - such as,

Leads to customer loyalty
Enhanced patient retention i.e. satisfying a single customer can reach approximately reach up to four
Can command higher price without losing their profit
Constant profitability
Improved staff morale with fewer staff proceeds which direct to increased productivity
Decrease of malpractice risks
Quickly tackle accreditation issues
Enhance both personal and professional contentment

Along with these, hospitals need to take time to maintain the standards of the hospitals such as,

Telephone Service – Smart and intelligent person to handle calls with a good practice of voice to help doctors with the additional calls during their professional work.

Office Appearance – Design it aesthetically with the well-furnished item and as well make it properly spaced with good interiors.

Waiting Time – Patients expect to see the doctor as early as possible. The waiting period should be as less as possible.

Patient-Doctor Relations – Satisfaction of the patient can increase based on the inter-personal skills of the physician.

Patient Edification – Clear their doubts with more tolerance and kindness. Be proactive while knowing concerns and be informative while advising.

Crisis Handling – Hospital infrastructure and aspects should be easily accessible and patient friendly.

Doctors should be capable enough to address patients’ complaints and this is crucial culture and attitude of the hospitals. A patient satisfaction survey indicates that patients expect cost-effective care with other facilities like dietary services, house-keeping, lab facilities, pharmacy and more.

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Contextualizing the Role of Operation Manager

A Healthy Organizational Change: An Essential Overview

Infection Control in Hospitals

5 Ways to Manage Good Patient Flow in Your Hospital

Strategies for Reducing Hospital Administrative Costs

High-Quality Services is an Efficient Way for Patient Satisfaction

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