Importance of work engagement in primary healthcare

Abstract

Background Work engagement is crucial for quality care at the primary healthcare level. This is especially true during the Covid-19 pandemic, as it has effects on the community from both a health and economic point of view. For example, inadequate work engagement can lead to fewer referrals to the secondary healthcare level. This study aims to examine the work engagement level in a public healthcare organisation at the primary healthcare level to further explore the role of work environment characteristics. The study addresses a research gap in the field of primary healthcare and emphasises the importance of managing the factors promoting work engagement. The future of healthcare will be strongly shaped by population ageing and Covid-19 disruption, which have created unpredictable and unfavourable working situations. Method A descriptive, cross-sectional, correlational design was used including the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale with a non-probabilistic availability sample of 630 employees of the Community Health Centre Ljubljana, Slovenia, in 2018. The role of the work environment was observed by applying the job resources concept adapted to the context of the observed organisation. Results Work engagement in the observed organisation is higher compared to previous research. The research confirmed that job resources play an important role in employees’ work engagement. The high level of work engagement of the home care nursing employees coupled with the significant proportions of unengaged in the management of the organization also caught our attention. This difference highlights the importance of the leadership style, career choices and employment process that exist in an institution. Conclusion The study has important implications for healthcare management at the primary level for unlocking the work engagement by ‘managing’ the factors stimulating work engagement. The hidden potential is especially large in so called ‘soft areas’, such as leadership style, communication and organisational climate, which are also less expensive to manage than other aspects of the work environment.

The association between day-to-day stress experiences, recovery, and work engagement among office workers in academia–An Ecological Momentary Assessment study

“…The questionnaire was originally developed in Dutch and the reliability and validity were confirmed by Schaufeli and Bakker [ 12 ]. The reliability and validity of the Slovenian version were confirmed by previous research [ 39 ]. Two out of five vigour items (e.g., “At my work , I feel bursting with energy” ), two out of five dedication items (e.g., “I am enthusiastic about my job” ), and two out of six absorption items (e.g., “Time flies when I’m working” ) were randomly selected by the STRAW application for each EMA and were asked once a day in the evening.…”

Work engagement status of registered nurses in pediatric units in Saudi Arabia: A cross‐sectional study

“…Full engrossment in an assigned task or responsibility comes under absorption [13]. Among healthcare providers, work engagement refers to the involvement of professional skills, interest, energy, and physical capabilities exhibited in fulfillment of their responsibilities [14]. A systematic review examined the antecedents and outcomes of work engagement in professional nursing practice and identified 17 outcomes of work engagement categorized into performance and care outcomes, professional outcomes, and personal outcomes [15].…”

Engagement en personal de salud de un policlínico privado de Lima Norte

“…El engagement se refiere al sentido de conexión energética y afectiva que tienen los empleados con las actividades de su trabajo y se perciben a sí mismos con las capacidades suficientes para afrontar las demandas de su actividad. El compromiso laboral es crucial para una atención de calidad en el primer nivel de atención de la salud (1) .…”

“…El compromiso laboral es crucial para una atención de calidad en el primer nivel de atención de la salud (1) . Las características del entorno de trabajo de enfermería que influyen en el compromiso laboral son los siguientes: la complejidad del trabajo, ambigüedad de roles, la alta responsabilidad, la carga de trabajo mental y física, la falta de control del trabajo, amplitud de control y carga de trabajo, la falta de oportunidades para el crecimiento intelectual y profesional, el liderazgo inadecuado, apoyo social deficiente por parte del supervisor y/o colegas, colaboración difícil entre enfermera y médico y desequilibrio esfuerzo-recompensa (2) .…”

“…Encontraron que el 5,4% de los empleados tiene un nivel de compromiso laboral bajo y el 1,1% un nivel muy bajo. Según sus dimensiones, en vigor predomino un nivel medio (=4.56) al igual que la dedicación (=4.82), mientras que la absorción es alta (=4,60) (7) .…”