Unit rationale, description and aim
Health professional demographics show an ageing workforce. Health professionals who are quite new in their careers will increasingly be offered higher level duties in terms of health leadership and management positions. These management positions will be within an environment that is both complex and dynamic, but where quality and safety are paramount. One aspect of the complexity of health service organisations is organisational culture.
This unit is important for students who are positioned in, or aspiring to, health leadership or management roles which require them to have specialised knowledge and skill in evaluating solutions to complex problems associated with the dynamics of organisational culture. In this unit, students will critically analyse healthcare organisations and the management of healthcare staff from within the context of organisational culture. This aspect of health management will be considered from within a framework of safety and quality and with the notion of a safety-culture being highlighted. Strategies to create safe and supportive workplace cultures will be considered.
The aim of this unit is to provide students with a sound understanding of theories of organisational culture and the dynamic inter-relationship between the structure of health services and the agency of the health practitioner, in order to enable them to implement effective management strategies that are both safe and conducive to quality healthcare.
Learning outcomes
To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.
Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.
Explore the graduate capabilities.
Describe how knowledge of theoretical approaches t...
Learning Outcome 01
Differentiate between different types of organisat...
Learning Outcome 02
Create culturally safe management strategies that ...
Learning Outcome 03
Content
Topics will include:
Organisational culture:
- definitions of organisational culture
- types of organisational culture
- theories of organisational culture
- relationship between the individual and the organisation’s culture
Organisational culture and safety:
- concepts of safety culture
- safety culture in a healthcare organisation
- the impact of organisational culture on safety and quality
- safety, culture and whistle-blowing
Management of the cultural aspects of an organisation:
- approaches to the management of staff within an organisational culture
- culture and change management
- managing staff for practice improvement within an organisational culture
- creating supportive workplace cultures
Assessment strategy and rationale
In order to pass this unit, students are expected to submit two graded assessment tasks. In addition, students must achieve a cumulative grade of at least 50% across both assessments. The assessment strategy used allows for the progressive development of knowledge and skills necessary for the student to be able to consider management approaches that are necessary for the student to be able to demonstrate achievement of learning outcomes.
Overview of assessments
Assessment Task 1: Online Discussion Forum Enable...
Assessment Task 1: Online Discussion Forum
Enables students to collaborate with peers in an online environment to:
a) critically appraise organisational culture
b) evaluate the impact of organisational culture on the safe environment care
50%
Assessment Task 2: Major Essay Enables students t...
Assessment Task 2: Major Essay
Enables students to demonstrate application of different approaches to staff management in providing safe, quality care.
50%
Learning and teaching strategy and rationale
ACU Online
The active learning approaches applied in this unit are flexible and inclusive, allowing students the opportunity to analyse and critically evaluate various approaches to the management of the cultural aspects of an organisation in relation to safety and quality in complex healthcare environments. Teaching and learning strategies utilised in this unit will support students in meeting the aim and achieving the learning outcomes relevant to this unit as well as to the broader course learning outcomes.
The online classroom learning environment and associated e-modules will create opportunities for students to reflect on the complexity of organisational culture in a health care environment, in particular to explore and consider different types of organisational culture, theories of organisational culture, concepts of organisational safety culture, and quality and change management. In constructing knowledge about the complex and dynamic inter-relationship between the structure of health services and the agency of the health professional, students will evaluate different management strategies that are both safe and conducive to quality healthcare.
Multi-mode
This unit utilises an active learning approach whereby students will be provided with an opportunity to participate in discussions and interactive engagement with peers through attendance via a series of on-line lecture style classes that will serve as resource sessions. This can involve, but is not limited to, discussion, debate, role play and other learning activities. In addition, learning e-modules and links to electronic readings will be provided on the learning management system to guide students’ reading and extend the classroom learning.
The online classroom learning environment and associated e-modules will create opportunities for students to reflect on the complexity of organisational culture in a health care environment, in particular to explore and consider different types of organisational culture, theories of organisational culture, concepts of organisational safety culture, and quality and change management. In constructing knowledge about the complex and dynamic inter-relationship between the structure of health services and the agency of the health professional, students will evaluate different management strategies that are both safe and conducive to quality healthcare.
Representative texts and references
There is no required text for this unit.
Recommended References
Beardsmore, E., & McSherry, R. (2017). Healthcare workers perceptions of organisational culture and the impact on the delivery of compassionate quality care. Journal of Research in Nursing, 22(1-2), 42 - 56.
Clegg, S., Kornberger, M., & Pitsis, T. S., Mount, M (2019). Managing & organizations: An introduction to theory and practice (5th ed.). London: Sage Publications
Kim, T., & Chang, J. (2019). Organizational culture and performance: a macro-level longitudinal study. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 40(1), 65–84. https://doi.org/10.1108/LODJ-08-2018-0291
Lassiter, Norasakkunkit, V., Shuman, B., & Toivonen, T. (2018). Diversity and resistance to change: Macro conditions for marginalization in post-industrial societies. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 812–812. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00812
Nel, P., Werner, A., Fazey, M., Millett, B., Du Plessis, A., Wordsworth, R., … & Suseno, Y. (2017). Human resource management in Australia. (2nd ed.). South Melbourne: Oxford University Press.
O’Neill, D., De Vries, J., & Comiskey, C. M. (2021). Leadership and community healthcare reform: a study using the Competing Values Framework (CVF). Leadership in Health Services., 34(4), 485–498.https://doi.org/10.1108/LHS-01-2021-0007
Quinlan, E., Robertson, S., Miller, N.. & Robertson-Boersma, I. (2014). Interventions to reduce bullying in health care organisations: A scoping review. Health Services Management Research, 27(1-2), 33 – 44.
Wood, J., Zeffane, R., Fromholtz, M., Wiesner, R., Morrison, R. R., Factor, A., & McKeown, T. (2019). Organisational behaviour core concepts and applications (Fifth Australasian edition.). John Wiley and Sons Australia, Ltd.