Healthcare professionals who perceive their work as meaningful stay motivated and are willing to go the extra mile to make an impact. However, they face numerous obstacles in their daily roles. This is the finding of research conducted by organizational consultant Josine Janssen, connected to VU Amsterdam.
The Netherlands Scientific Council for Government Policy predicts that by 2030, one in five people will need to work in healthcare. By 2050, this will rise to one in three of the working population. Currently, there are 50,000 job vacancies in the sector, and a healthcare crisis looms. This prompted Janssen to investigate what drives healthcare professionals to stay in their roles. Is it salary, vacation days, or other secondary benefits? “No, for healthcare professionals, it is crucial to experience their work as meaningful,” Janssen explains. “When they don’t feel they are making an impact, they hit a wall and leave the profession.”
Barriers
Janssen’s research reveals that various barriers prevent healthcare workers from experiencing meaning in their work. High workloads and time constraints make it difficult for them to derive satisfaction from their roles. Janssen shares an example: “In home care, I observed a worker who was allocated just a few minutes to put on compression stockings for an elderly woman. When the woman broke down in tears due to loneliness, I could see the caregiver calculating in her head. She comforted the woman, sacrificed her own lunch break, and managed to save some time with another client later.” Another commonly reported barrier is the disconnect between management and the realities on the ground. “As a result, staff often retreat into their teams, where they find like-minded colleagues and a sense of purpose,” Janssen explains. However, this is not sustainable in the long term. Healthcare workers struggle to say ‘no’ to colleagues, become overworked, and feel compelled to break rules. “For instance, in a home care organization in the north of the country, employees had to check off a double verification for medication approval. Normally, this is done remotely by another staff member. But the Wi-Fi in the area is poor and often doesn’t work. Despite raising this issue with management several times, nothing changed. So, what do you do as a caregiver? Deny people their medication?”
Healthcare organizations must address these issues systematically
According to Janssen, these examples highlight the importance of removing structural barriers that hinder meaningful work. “Managers, engage with your staff: listen to the challenges they face in their work, the obstacles that stand in the way of meaningful work, and what gives them satisfaction and motivation,” Janssen advises. This not only makes healthcare organizations more attractive to employees but also contributes to better care for patients and clients.