The Impact of Organizational Culture on Healthcare Employee Workplace Perceptions
Open Access
- Author:
- Gwynn, Amy Nicole
- Area of Honors:
- Health Policy and Administration
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Science
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Deirdre Mc Caughey, Thesis Supervisor
Dr. Rhonda Be Lue, Thesis Honors Advisor - Keywords:
- Health Policy
Organizational Culture
Hospital Performance - Abstract:
- Organizational culture reflects how an organization conducts business, treats employees and consumers, and reinforces company goals (Sanders-Reio, 2011). A positive organizational culture generally leads to higher performance and productivity, greater product quality, and sets an expectation to deliver superior customer care, service and safety (Krause & Hidley, 2009). Promoting a positive organizational culture is especially pertinent in healthcare because of the stressful, fast-paced work environment that challenges individuals with various educations and backgrounds to work together as a cohesive team (Arnetz,1999). The study’s hypothesis is that a supportive organizational culture will positively impact employee workplace perceptions. This study surveyed 1,362 hospital employees working in environmental services (EVS), food and nutrition (F&N), and transportation at four different hospital systems. Participants used a Likert scale to evaluate their relationships with leaders, co-workers, and their perceptions of their department’s commitment to safety. A hierarchal linear regression model showed that the variables supervisor support (β=.298, β=.106, β=.234; respectively), workplace environment (β=.231, β=.119, β=.197; respectively), and unit safety (β=.086, β=.226, β=.182; respectively) were significantly related to increased job satisfaction (R2=.318), quality of work life (R2=.305), and quality of care esteem (R2=.171). The results confirm the hypothesis that positive organizational culture leads to better employee perceptions of their workplace. Supervisor support and encouragement, a workplace environment with cohesive teamwork, and units that emphasize safety practices are associated with higher employee job satisfaction, quality of work life, and quality of care esteem. When employees have better perceptions of their workplace, they are likely to be more engaged in their job, loyal to their employer, and perform better in their profession (Krause & Hidley, 2009).