Reflection assignment health science 450
Ayoosh
CommitteesandTeams1.pptx
Committees and Teams
Presented by Dr. Terence Hodges
HSCI 450
Intro to Committees (1 of 3)
Healthcare organizations need committees to help consolidate the dual authority tracks within the medical authority structure AND administrative/support structure
Functions of healthcare organizations typically monitored and assessed by committees include:
pharmacy and therapeutics,
infection control,
patient care evaluation,
surgical case review,
health records,
quality assurance, and
patterns of care review
Intro to Committees (2 of 3)
Committee participation, development of support data, and development of policies and procedures is an expected part of management
Committee activity in healthcare organizations is often found in legal and accrediting mandates
E.g. matters relating to medical staff (e.g. selection, credentials review, appointment, peer review) are usually under the Medical Executive Committee
Ethics committees in hospitals and other healthcare settings were created in response to the Patient Self-Determination Act
Intro to Committees (3 of 3)
The Quality Committee or the Performance Improvement Program is usually headed by the senior medical officer and the quality improvement officer
Some organizations place all externally and internally mandated reviews in the hands of the healthcare compliance committee
OIG: Compliance Oversight for Healthcare Leaders
Compliance Oversight for Healthcare Leaders
What is the role of the Office of Inspector General?
Who should the compliance function report to?
What is T.A.C.T?
Why is the compliance officer role important?
What makes the best compliance programs?
Discuss your “biggest takeaway” from the clip.
Nature of Committees (1 of 2)
A committee may be defined as a group of persons in an organization who function collectively on an organized basis to perform some administrative activity
A manager who informally calls together a team of subordinates or other managers to talk over an idea or problem is not dealing with a committee
The emphasis in the committee concept is the creation of a structure that has an organized basis for its activity and interaction
Committees may be temporary or permanent:
The temporary, or ad hoc, committee is created to deal with one issue, such as cost-containment compliance initiatives
Standing committees, are relatively permanent, and may focus on recurring matters
Nature of Committees (2 of 2)
A committee may have either a line or staff authority
If the committee has authority to bind subordinates who are responsible to it, it is part of the line unit structure
If the committee has an advisory relationship to line managers, it is a staff unit
The Plural Executive
A plural executive may be established by law, as in federal regulatory agencies (e.g. Federal Communications Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission)
The law creating such agencies stipulates that there be a regulatory board which has a line authority as a board
The board varies greatly in the amount of power held and authority exercised
Although the board has formal authority, the center of true power in the organization may shift from the executive board to the appointed CEO, who reports to the executive board
The board of trustees in a hospital is an example of plural executive.
The Task Force
A task force is a temporary organizational unit created to carry out a specific project or assignment
The task force presents their findings to some person or committee that has a line authority
The task force analyzes the question, completes the research, and makes it recommendations (plan of action)
Unlike committees, which remain in existence until specifically dissolved, the task force ceases functioning when its assigned task is completed
A task force, in general, does not have a line authority
Purpose and Uses of Committees (1 of 4)
In a committee structure, no one manager should bear the burden of a decision that will have far-reaching consequences
Collaboration is likely to be more effective if the knowledge, experience, and judgement of several workers address the problem in a coordinated manner
Group deliberations may be mandatory in some organizations because of stipulations in a union contract, an accrediting agency, or a regulatory body
Purposes and Uses of Committees (2 of 4)
Every problem a manager faces cannot be solved, and every plan cannot be implemented, so committees provide an additional organizational structure that can be used for this purpose
For example, the creation of a special-purpose committee to deal with a project or problem involving several units of an institution is an acceptable means of augmenting the normal organizational structure
Purposes and Uses of Committees (3 of 4)
In disciplinary matters, an organization may seek to reflect the larger societal value of due process, even when there is no legal or contractual requirement to do so.
For example, an increase in litigation has added an almost legal flavor to processes in which an individual’s performance is evaluated
A committee of the individual’s peers, even if the peer group does not have a line authority, may be constituted to make a recommendation to the line officer or governing board
A union contract may specify the composition and function of a grievance committee to ensure that it includes line workers as well as management officials
Purposes and Uses of Committees (4 of 4)
Committee participation may be used as part of the executive training process.
Exposure to multiple facets of a decision, the defense of various positions, and the development of insight into the problems and considerations of other managers’ decisions are part of the training experience
Potential managers are assessed by other members of the executive team and appropriate coaching and counseling may be given to the management trainee
Committee Limitations and Disadvantages
The committee structure is not the proper arena for decisions that need to be made quickly
Committee costs can be astronomical
The committee may be indecisive because of insufficient time to deliberate, which can lead to adjournment with no action
Material may be prepared and distributed in a timely manner, but the committee members may fail to brief themselves prior to the meeting
A member of a subcommittee may fail to carry out an assignment that is critical for action
Absenteeism or tardiness may obstruct the committee’s work
Activity (page 240)
In no more than a 100 words, describe the structure and size of a healthcare organization that has a board of directors and a formal committee structure. This description would most appropriately be of a hospital or nursing home, preferably one with which you are familiar, but it can be imaginary if you have no direct familiarity.
For your chosen organization, you are to design a complete two-part committee structure. This process will consist of naming (1) the committees you would expect to exist under the auspices of the board of directors and (2) the administrative committees you would expect to exist. For each committee you name, provide a one or two sentence description of its mission, and indicate the approximate number of committee members and any primary expertise that might be required on the committee. (To complete this exercise, it may be necessary to perform some research into healthcare organization committee practices)
