Critical Decision Making for Providers

Mike is running late again. The last time he spoke with his supervisor, he promised he would be on time. Mike even left his home 20 minutes earlier than usual, but there was an accident on his commute. The job is very important to Mike. He is the sole provider for his wife and newborn baby, but his supervisor told him that if he continued to be late he might face termination. Upon arriving, Mike observes a spill on the floor. He must make a decision: stop and make sure the spill is cleaned up or ignore it all together. If he safeguards the spill, surely he will be late clocking in and could face losing his job. Anyway, the spill is in another work area, and perhaps it will be cleaned up while he is clocking in. What decision should he make?
Mike decides to clock in so he does not face losing his job. He is making every effort to keep his job and cannot afford to be terminated. Besides, he has a list of things he needs to accomplish from yesterday in addition to his assignment for the day. Certainly someone else who is responsible for the area will take care of the spill soon.
Later, Mike is asked to go to a patient's room to gather some patient information. He learns the patient was admitted to the hospital after falling in the lobby this morning. The patient is in a lot of pain and appears to have a broken hip from the injury. The patient goes on to describe the incident and asks him why this would happen in the hospital. She states, "I thought the hospital was a safe place. Don't they have programs to prevent these things?"
A wave of guilt floods over Mike. He questions himself, "Could I have prevented this from happening?" Mike is now faced with a new dilemma. Should he admit to his supervisor what occurred upon his arrival to work this morning? What if by his admission, he is terminated anyway?
View the scenario called "Critical Decision Making for Providers" found in the Allied Health Community media.
In a 1,000-1,250-word paper, examine the scenario involving Mike, the lab technician, and discuss the following:

1. Discuss the consequences of a failure to report.
2. Explain the impact his decision had on patient safety and organizational performance (risk for litigation, organization's quality metrics, workload of other hospital departments, etc.).
3. As Mike's manager, describe how you would address the issue with him and steps you would take to ensure other staff members do not repeat the same kind of mistake.
4. Reflect on the scenario and describe what underlying aspects or issues may be contributing to workplace dilemmas such as this.
5. Consider the manner in which most health care organizations function (structure, people, technology, environment). As a leader, discuss what principles of organizational behavior and development can be applied to effectively contribute to the success of a health care organization. How could these principles be applied to this scenario?

Sample Solution