Why Should We Reward and Recognize in Healthcare? Best Practice Series

April 1, 2021
April 1, 2021

This blog post continues our series of patient experience Best Practices from BLG, a HealthStream Company. Every week we will share information from BLG that demonstrates their expansive understanding of the challenges faced by healthcare organizations and the solutions BLG has identified for improving the patient experience and patient and business outcomes.

A program for rewarding and recognizing employees is one of the most effective tools available to inspire, motivate and create excellence within your organization’s culture. Employee satisfaction is driven by a variety of factors, both tangible and intangible, from friendly work environment to good pay. In an effort to pin down exactly what matters most to individuals, behavioral science surveys have repeatedly asked employees what brings them the highest job satisfaction. And time after time, answers reveal that “full appreciation for work done” (recognition) is number one, followed by “feeling ‘in’ on things.” Good wages actually appears midway down the list.

It should be no surprise that the top driver of employee satisfaction and loyalty is recognition, because one of the most innate needs of humankind is to feel “valued.” While monetary compensation will always be a factor, being recognized for a  job well-done is emotionally satisfying and generates a personal connection to the work. The positive emotions that result can spread throughout an organization, shaping its success and helping it to thrive.

What is the Value of Reward and Recognition?

Healthcare organizations that use rewards and recognition realize the following benefits:

  • Promotes employee satisfaction
  • Produces a more joyful, happy, upbeat place to work
  • Nurtures camaraderie and boosts morale
  • Raises employee self-esteem and confidence levels
  • Promotes employee empowerment
  • Encourages the willingness to take on new challenges
  • Fosters contribution of ideas to improve productivity
  • Creates loyalty and helps retain great employees
  • Injects powerful stories into the culture and creates heroes! 

What is the Impact of Reward and Recognition?

There is nothing more important to most individuals—the ones you want working with ou—than a sense that their contributions are valued. Ask any major, successful corporation and you’ll discover— from Wal-Mart to Disney—they have programs to reward and recognize their employees.

People are the lifeblood of your organization. When you empower your employees to be partners in your success, they begin to look at their jobs differently. They become team players. They begin to care about the overall reputation of where they work. They invest their hearts and souls into something that matters beyond a paycheck. And, consequently, they become the driving force behind change that equals success.

Can dispirited employees who are distrustful of the organization deliver the level of care that
generates high patient satisfaction scores? Usually not; instead the facts show that there is an undeniable correlation between employee contentment and patient satisfaction. Satisfied employees are happier and more fulfilled, work more productively and are committed to fulfilling the mission, vision and values of the culture. The end result is an enhanced customer experience, reflected in high patient satisfaction scores.

“I have yet to find the person, however exalted in his or her station, who did not do better work and put forth greater effort under a spirit of approval than under a spirit of criticism.” —Financier Charles Schwab

About BLG, a HealthStream Company 

BLG provides Patient-Centered Excellence Consulting, where the patient is at the center of
everything we do. Our tools, tactics, and best practices are evidence-based and outcomes driven.  We provide custom, individualized coaching that produces measurable, sustainable increases in patient satisfaction, employee engagement, quality outcomes, and profitability.