I.        Introduction

Management personnel have conventionally found themselves communicating in their respective organisations, one way or the other. Nowadays, in any level of the organisation, employees are progressively learning that communication is increasingly becoming important. This is because the complexity of the current environment, both internal and external, inevitably requires the common employee to collaborate with the other entities in the organisation. These entities may come in the form of superiors, subordinates, clients, and even customers. There have been numerous studies that pertain to communication involving people predominantly working on manufacturing or service-oriented organisation. However, there appear to be a dearth of work with reference to organisations that focuses on healthcare. Essentially, those organisations that operate in the area of healthcare have a more complex framework with regards to their communication. To illustrate, the internal communications between the employees acquire the basic principles of organisational communications, however the dynamics of these companies tend to have an additional attachment: communication with their clients and customers. A major part of their operations is to communicate with their customers as they are bound by principles like informed consent, duty of care, and the Hippocratic Oath. In this regard, this paper shall provide a report and consequent analysis of the existing communications with both the employees and their clients. For the purposes of this paper, the report shall focus on Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital.  


 


II.      Background of the Organisation

The Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital is a privately owned hospital was created in 1922. It was initially known as the Yeung Wo Nursing Home. Even at its humble beginnings, the medical facility already had the prominent practitioners in the administrative region with the support of the prominent members of society. The overall policy of the organisation is to give the patients a high standard of medical care. This is continuously being done by the organisation by hiring the best medical professionals and the purchasing top-of-the-line equipment. In the same manner, their existing staffs are subjected incessantly to regular training to deal with the rapid changes in the medical and health care field.  


The company operates with the motto of “quality in service and excellence in care.” Looking at this mission statement, it appears that the company is inherently placing their clients at the top of their priority lists. Concurrently, it also implies that it intends to develop the welfare as well as the skills of its employees as having a competent and well-qualified staff also entails the quality of care provided to their patients. The medical institution also adheres to international standards which makes them at par with other hospitals in the international scale. In fact, the operations of the said organisation are subject to the close scrutiny of the Trent Accreditation Board, a very respectable and reputable health accreditation scheme of UK and Hong Kong hospitals. Since 2004, the Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital has been granted full accreditation of the said accreditation board.


 


III.    The Different Communication Techniques Used in the Organisation

Based the observations made in Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital, the communications systems present in the organisation is categorised into several distinctions: by level, by formality, and by direction.


A.    Levels

As observed in the respondent organisation, there are at least five levels of communications that were practiced. One level of communication is interpersonal communication. (1995) This is basically observed in the lower levels of the company. In this level, the employees are able to speak freely without strict attention to form. This is also manifested among the interaction between the non-medical staff with the clients of the hospital. Another level is the group level communication. (1997) This is seen in the use of the intercom and the paging system in the Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital. Normally, the communication is one-sided and uses formal language to convey information. Organisational level communications, on the other hand, focuses on the internal communications and interface in the Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital. (2001) This is seen in memorandums, bulletin boards, and even the individual intranet of the each department. Intra-organisational communication is also observed between the suppliers of the medicine and the hospital administration. (2003) In this regard, the communications systems used vary from formal correspondence (written) to face-to-face interaction (oral). Lastly, the company also uses mass communication. This is seen in the website of the company. The contents of the website cater to both Chinese speakers and English speakers.


     


B.     Formal and Informal Communications

Informal and formal communications are observed in the organisation. With regards to formal communication systems, the employees use it strictly when their bureaucratic functions are in operations. (2004) This may well be because of the distinctive demarcation between the employees of the hospital. Those that wear lab coats and those that doesn’t done one regard each other differently as their uniforms manifest the distinction in their hierarchy in the organisation. On the other hand, those that use informal communications are normally observed in interpersonal and horizontal communication. ( 1990) This means that the informal communication system is practiced between peers.


C.    Direction

The direction of the communications systems in the organisation manifests vertical and horizontal. In the case of vertical communications, this is seen in the case of hospital administrators and the resident doctors. (1998) This is also manifested frequently in the interaction between the medical doctors and the nurses. This means that the vertical direction of communications show the process of communicating between individuals in different organisational hierarchies.    


 The horizontal communication systems are shown in a lateral exchange of communication. ( 2007) Hence following the description of the vertical communication, the interaction in this type of system is between individuals without a hierarchal relationship with one another. Clients and nurses communicate in this manner as well as those that are considered equals with regards to their positions in the hospital.


IV.   The strategies and techniques used by the organization to support communication between people with specific communication needs

To deal with the individuals with certain communication needs, the hospital has installed several mechanisms to aid them in dealing with the situation. For instance, there are hospital staffs that know how to communicate using basic sign language. Similarly, the paging system of the Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital uses both visual and auditory devices concurrently in announcing certain reminders for the patients and incoming clients. Written words are flashed in the screen which simultaneously provides a voice over reading the announcement. To signify that this is an actual announcement and not a mere filler, a melodic tone precedes the actual announcement which serves as a cue for the people who hears it to wither look at the monitor or listen to the actual announcement. Within bureaucratic lines, most of the formal communication functions processed by the organisation are in written form. These are manifested in memorandums, emails, bulletin board and correspondence. In this manner, the problem lies on the employees who may have dyslexia or other visual impairments as the formal communications in the organisation are limited to written form and scant in audio correspondence.


 


 


V.     The strategies, policies and procedures used as models of good communication practice within the organization

The company uses a combination of the cultural approach and the information system approach to communications in the organisation. In the cultural approach, the theory recognises that the organisation has their own culture. (1996) This indicates that each organisation has an image, character, and climate. These elements of the organisation are acquired through the stories derived from the actual environment. These stories may come in the form of corporate stories, personal stories and collegial stories. In the case of the Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital, they use these stories to determine the communication needs of the company. For instance, the culture expressly manifests a hierarchal organisation. This prompted the hospital to install technologies that will strengthen its vertical communication lines. In the same manner, the hospital is reputed in the area for its customer service hence the hospital has given the directive on its staff to place their clients and patients as the top priorities.


This is compounded by the information systems theory which rests on the assumption that the individuals in the organisation are interconnected. (2006) Basically, this is recognised early on in the observations of the hospital. The functions of the employees, both medical and non-medical, appear to be rather symbiotic. One will have difficulty in performing its tasks if one of the other members of the organisation fails to carry out their respective tasks. Basically, this interaction in the organisation, using vertical and horizontal communications, is a good measure of eliminating some level of uncertainty in the process.   


 


VI.   Effects of individual values, the culture of the organization and the ability of the individuals to communicate on the methods of communication used

To some extent, the individuals in the organisation are affected with the communication processes involved. Because of the vertical communication processes, the employees in the lower echelon have reservations in interacting with the medical residents and even the interns. If they do communicate with them, they tend to interact in such an extremely formal manner where hierarchy is explicitly manifested.


This is the exact opposite on the other hand with the employees’ interaction with the patients and clients. They tend to communicate with the clients with utmost care, regardless of rank in the organisation. This manner of communication to their patients provides a considerable feeling of comfort and security that the company is reputed. This means that the horizontal communication practices implemented by both all the employees of the Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital are reflected to society as a whole.


Normally, it is recommended that the formal communication lines should be tempered so as to empower all of the employees in the organisation. However, in these types of organisations, the existence of a hierarchy and clear lines of rank is imperative. This is to ensure that the operations of the company are managed in most possible manner. Those employees in the lower echelons should always follow the directives of those in the higher levels in the organisational structure, given as their respective jobs depend on each other. If one fails to comply or deviate from the existing system, then the lives of the patients and possible clients are compromised.  


 


VII. The effectiveness of the organization’s systems and policies

The Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital is considered as one of the top healthcare facilities in the administrative region. It is deemed by Trent Accreditation Board as at par with the existing standards of international healthcare facilities. These descriptions alone should be enough in presenting the effectiveness of the organisation’s system of communications and the policies involved in the process. In the same manner, the website of the company is a good testament of the effectiveness of the communication schemes implemented in the company. It serves not only as a tool for information gathering for clients and patients; it also serves as an intranet for the employees of the hospital.


VIII.           Conclusion

The discussions above show the nature of communication systems as an integral tool in the process of organisation. This is especially true in companies that are in the business of improving the wellbeing of the people and in the business of saving lives. Theories on communication have manifested explicitly in their operations. It helped in facilitating their bureaucratic operations as well as the way they dealt with their clients. Essentially, the operations and communication systems meshed together into a single process that worked efficiently for the Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital.


 



Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com


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