Pursuit of Happiness, Science, and Effective Staffing
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."
– Declaration of Independence, 1776
The founders of our country knew the value of happiness and believed the pursuit of happiness is one of our inalienable rights. So what happened? Where did we miss that all organizations do not support the right to be happy at work? In fact, some leaders have believed people having fun at work aren't productive and only respond to dictatorial and not facilitative leadership. It should be intuitive that happy people produce better results than unhappy people. And it should be intuitive that leaders must be singularly focused on the how they can create happiness within their companies so people can grow, thrive, and reach sustainable organizational goals.
But in spite of such common sense, people are not that happy at work and it is not getting better. Crowley (2012) reports worker happiness has fallen every year for the past 25 years and today half of Americans hate their jobs. Nurses are not too happy either. A large-scale questionnaire reported that from 2011 to 2010, the satisfaction levels of registered nurses decreased, 43% would not recommend nursing as a profession, and one in four intend to change employers (AMN Healthcare, 2011).
In another study, 18% of nurses reported depression, which is higher than the national rate of 9% (Letvak, Ruhm, & Gupta, 2012). Alarmingly, but not surprisingly, in organizations where nurses are dissatisfied, patient satisfaction ratings are also low (McHugh, Kutney-Lee, Cimiotti, Sloane, & Aiken, 2011). The correlation of patient safety and nurse satisfaction has been well documented as well as the effect of positive nursing leadership behaviors on satisfaction and patient safety (Wong & Cummings, 2007). The exhaustive list of studies correlating happiness and productivity is beyond the scope of this column. However, with the new reimbursement methodologies, hospitals will be penalized for lower rates of patient satisfaction and quality. Now we have the opportunity to look at happiness at work and implement the evidence that tells us happy organizations are more cost effective, have better outcomes, and achieve organizational success because they have a loyal and productive workforce that loves their work and the organization.
Abstract and Introduction
Introduction
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."
– Declaration of Independence, 1776
The founders of our country knew the value of happiness and believed the pursuit of happiness is one of our inalienable rights. So what happened? Where did we miss that all organizations do not support the right to be happy at work? In fact, some leaders have believed people having fun at work aren't productive and only respond to dictatorial and not facilitative leadership. It should be intuitive that happy people produce better results than unhappy people. And it should be intuitive that leaders must be singularly focused on the how they can create happiness within their companies so people can grow, thrive, and reach sustainable organizational goals.
But in spite of such common sense, people are not that happy at work and it is not getting better. Crowley (2012) reports worker happiness has fallen every year for the past 25 years and today half of Americans hate their jobs. Nurses are not too happy either. A large-scale questionnaire reported that from 2011 to 2010, the satisfaction levels of registered nurses decreased, 43% would not recommend nursing as a profession, and one in four intend to change employers (AMN Healthcare, 2011).
In another study, 18% of nurses reported depression, which is higher than the national rate of 9% (Letvak, Ruhm, & Gupta, 2012). Alarmingly, but not surprisingly, in organizations where nurses are dissatisfied, patient satisfaction ratings are also low (McHugh, Kutney-Lee, Cimiotti, Sloane, & Aiken, 2011). The correlation of patient safety and nurse satisfaction has been well documented as well as the effect of positive nursing leadership behaviors on satisfaction and patient safety (Wong & Cummings, 2007). The exhaustive list of studies correlating happiness and productivity is beyond the scope of this column. However, with the new reimbursement methodologies, hospitals will be penalized for lower rates of patient satisfaction and quality. Now we have the opportunity to look at happiness at work and implement the evidence that tells us happy organizations are more cost effective, have better outcomes, and achieve organizational success because they have a loyal and productive workforce that loves their work and the organization.
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