The Impact of Strategic Planning on Job Satisfaction among Hospital Staff: a case study

Background & Objectives: Hospital staff's job satisfaction has a significant role in improving the quality of hospital productivity. This study aimed to examine the impact of strategic planning on hospital staff's job satisfaction. Methods: This participatory action research was carried out in a selected private hospital in Isfahan/ Iran during 2012-2014. The hospital strategic plan, with a goal for improving job satisfaction was designed and implemented. Employees’ job satisfaction was measured before and after implementing the strategic plan through 9-item Job Satisfaction Questionnaire. Data were analyzed through SPSS22 software package. Results: The rate of subjects' job satisfaction in 2012 was approximately 58.6%. The highest satisfaction rate was found for the nature of job and job and coworkers' needs and the lowest was obtained for salary, job promotion, work conditions and job security. Employees’ job satisfaction increased to 64.7% in 2014 (10.1% improvement). Employees’ tendency for job quit decreased by 61.4% (from 42.2% in 2012 to 16.3% in 2014). Strategic plan had the most impact on dimensions of job promotion, management and supervision, coworkers and salary. Conclusion: Adequate designing and implementation of a strategic plan can improve job satisfaction of employees and reduces their tendency for job quit. Key¬words: Strategic planning, Employees, Job satisfaction, Hospital, Case study ¬Citation: Mosadeghrad AM, Ebneshahidi A, Abdolmohammadi N. The Impact of Strategic Planning on Job Satisfaction among Hospital Staff: a case study. Journal of Health Based Research 2017; 3(2): 99-114

The revival of nationalism and secularism in modern Iran

Iran is currently facing a time of demographic and ideological change. As the post-revolutionary generation has emerged into political awareness, there has been a revival of interest in democracy, nationalism, secularism and constitutionalism, and a heterogenic protest movement has gathered strength – particularly among young Iranians. This working paper aims to investigate these ongoing trends of secularisation and nationalism, as well as the response of the government. While the younger generation is not yet able to compete on a political level with the élite of the Islamic Republic, they do have potential, in the next decade, to establish a new ruling class able to change the political landscape of Iran

E-Commerce Audit Judgment Expertise: Does Expertise in System Change Management and Information Technology Auditing Mediate E-Commerce Audit Judgment Expertise?

A global survey of 203 E-commerce auditors was conducted to investigate the perceptions about the potential determinants of expertise in E-commerce audits. We hypothesize and find evidence indicating that information technology and communication expertise are positively related to expertise in E-commerce audit judgment. We also find that system change management expertise and information technology audit expertise mediate this relationship.E-commerce Audit Judgment, IT Audit, Structural Equations Modeling

Electrochemical conversion of bio-derived dicarboxylic acid into high value added chemicals

Recently, from both environmental and economic points of view, green polymers (or biobased polymers), which can be produced partially or entirely from renewable and sustainable natural resources, is of growing interest compared to conventional petroleum-based monomers and polymers. In this regard, lignocellulose biomass represents promising renewable source for production of renewable fuels, chemicals, organic solvent, and polymers. Here, we present a new rout to convert bio-derived unsaturated dicarboxylic acid via electrochemical hydrogenation into bioadvantaged monomer (trans-3 hexenedioic acid) that has a potential for synthesizing a new family of unsaturated polyamides (bioadvantaged Nylon 6,6). A bioadvantaged nylon 6,6 was prepared via polycondensation reaction between trans-3 hexenedioic acid (t3-HDA), adipic acid (AA) and hexamethylendiamine (HMDA). The produced bioadvantaged nylons were characterized by Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), wide angle X-ray scattering (WAXS), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Dynamic Mechanical Analyzer (DMA). The results of thermal properties indicate that the addition of t3-HDA doesn’t change the thermal stability of bioadvantaged nylon, however, incorporation of t3-HDA can change the crystalline structure of Nylon 6,6 from semi-crystalline to amorphous

The Iranian Presidential Election: Will Rouhani be Stopped by the Conservatives?

With less than four days till the Iranian presidential elections, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, one of six candidates, announced his withdrawal from the race endrosing Ebrahim Raisi. The six candidates were pre-selected by the Guardian Council from amongst 1,653 hopefuls. This means they met all the requirements to eventually become President of the Islamic Republic

Iran’s Hardliners: The unexpected winners of the US elections

With the surprise election of Donald Trump, many are concerned about the future of the nuclear deal with Iran. But this new direction in the US will not only affect Iran’s foreign relations. The rise of conservative ideology in American politics will also have impact on internal balances of power in the Islamic Republic. It will strengthen conservative fronts, led by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and weaken pragmatists like President Rouhani, Minister of Foreign Affairs Zarif, and former President Rafsanjani. This will be seen on three different fronts

Are Corporate Codes of Ethics and Risk Assessment by Internal Auditors Associated with Sustainability Audits by Internal Auditors?

An increasing number of organizations engage in sustainability reporting to the public. However, assurance of this disclosure is relatively new. In this study we investigate corporate codes of ethics and risk assessment by internal auditors as correlates of organizations’ engaging their internal audit functions (IAFs) in sustainability audits. Using data from a large sample of chief audit executives (CAEs) we find significant and positive associations between code of conduct and risk assessment and sustainability audits by IAFs. Also, we find positive and significant association between industry (environmentally sensitive vs. others), CAE experience, and CAE major (accounting vs. others) and sustainability audits by IAFs. Other control variables (organization size, CAE grad/undergrad degrees, and CAEcpe do not indicate significance in their association with sustainability audits by IAFs. These results have implications for design of sustainability reporting by various organizations and assurance of such reporting by internal auditors

E-Commerce Audit Judgment Expertise: Does Expertise in System Change Management and Information Technology Auditing Mediate E-Commerce Audit Judgment Expertise?

A global survey of 203 E-commerce auditors was conducted to investigate the perceptions about the potential determinants of expertise in E-commerce audits. We hypothesize and find evidence indicating that information technology and communication expertise are positively related to expertise in E-commerce audit judgment. We also find that system change management expertise and information technology audit expertise mediate this relationship

Comparison of Retrolaminar Paravertebral Infiltration of a Non-Steroid Mixture with Conventional Epidural Steroid Infiltration in Patients Suffering from Chronic Radicular Pain- A Retrospective Study

AbstractIntroduction:Chronic radicular pain is often treated by epidural steroid infiltration (ESI). In 2014, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a letter warning that ESI may result in rare but serious adverse events, including “loss of vision, stroke, paralysis, and death”. In this retrospective study, we compare retrolaminar paravertebral infiltration (PVI) of a non-steroid-mixture with ESI.Method:  We identified 31 patients registered in the Quebec Pain Registry suffering from chronic lumbar or cervical radicular pain referred to the Centre Hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal (CHUM) pain clinic between 2009 to 2014. These patients received ultrasound-guided retrolaminar PVI with a mixture of morphine 1 mg, ketamine 10 mg, neostigmine 0.5 mg, naloxone 2 ng, and bupivacaine 10 mg. The control group, matched for gender, age, and DN4 sub-scale score at baseline, consisted of 31 patients with the same pathology; they were treated by fluoroscopic-guided ESI. Principal pathologies in both groups were disc disorders and/or foraminal stenosis. All patients received only one infiltration during the six months following the initial visit. The numerical rating scale (NRS-11) was assessed at the first visit and six months later. The BPI, PCS and SF-12 were compared in both groups. Overall satisfaction in pain relief after six months was assessed with a scale of 1 (very unsatisfied) to 6 (very satisfied).Results: Average NRS-11 scores for the seven days preceding the first visit and after six months were compared in both groups. The same comparison was made for overal1 treatment satisfaction. There is no significant difference in the NRS-11 and in the satisfaction scores between the two groups.Discussion/conclusion: Neither of the two methods was shown to be superior to the other in pain relief and overall treatment satisfaction after six months. Considering the possible complications and side effects of ESI, PVI with a non-steroid mixture might be considered as an alternative method. Possibly, multiple PVIs could further decrease pain. Well-designed studies are needed to evaluate this hypothesis

The Impact of Strategic Planning on Patient Satisfaction: a case study

Background & Objectives: Patient satisfaction is a key hospital quality and effectiveness indicator. Strategic planning is necessary for hospitals to respond to the rapidly changing internal and external environments, to provide quality services, to maximize revenues and to minimize costs. This study aimed to examine the impact of strategic planning on patient satisfaction in a hospital. Methods: A participatory action research was conducted in a private hospital during the period 2012-2014. Hospital strategic plan was developed and implemented. A goal for enhancing patients’ satisfaction was determined in the strategic plan. Structural, procedural and cultural interventions were applied to improve patient satisfaction. Patient satisfaction was measured before and after implementing the strategic plan via a valid and reliable questionnaire. Data was analyzed using the SPSS software. Results: The quality of inpatient services and outpatient services were increased 6% and 8.6% respectively. Accordingly, inpatient satisfaction has increased from 77.4% in 2012 to 83.8% in 2014 (a growth of 8.3%). Out patient satisfaction has increased from 71.6% to 88.8% (a growth of 24%) during the same time period. Outpatients’ waiting time has declined by 33%. Improving quality of services and patient satisfaction enhanced inpatients’ and outpatients’ loyalty by 20% and 87% respectively. Conclusion: Developing an appropriate strategic plan, promoting a collaborative and cooperative culture, empowering employees, expanding organizational resources and implementing the strategic plan appropriately improve patient satisfaction and enhance their loyalty. Keywords: Strategic planning, Inpatients satisfaction, Outpatients satisfaction, Private hospital, case study, Participatory action research Citation: Mosadeghrad AM, Ebneshahidi A, Abdolmohammadi N. The Impact of Strategic Planning on Patient Satisfaction: a case study. Journal of Health Based Research 2018; 4(1): 13-29