The Pros and Cons of Contract Employment and Outsourcing in the Health Sector

Health Policy Analysis Contract Employment and Quality Improvement

Health Policy Analysis on Contract Employment and Quality Improvement

The authors discussed the reasons why contract employment and outsourcing have become attractive in various organizations.

I agree with this opinion. Outsourcing has been a useful activity within the contemporary business. This is because most companies seek to utilize innovations of science, technologies and techniques to issue competitive and qualified products that satisfy consumers. The situation is usable for parts in the concentration of development resources to achieve core competencies for the prospective activity directions (McLaughlin & McLaughlin, 2014). The approach to human resource development ensures a reduction of expenses and production of products due to the part works without application of additional efforts for the investment of acquiring activity types.

Outsourcing is beneficial in some ways. Some of the significant outsourcing advantages include a specialized focus on core activities, cost savings, improving performance, access to experience, and flexibility. Further, various researchers agree that handing over the noncore activities to trusted third parties allows companies to concentrate on activities critical to value proposition while increasing the levels of competitive positioning (McLaughlin & McLaughlin, 2014). Outsourcing is held towards attainment of major company goals such as cost savings. Special necessity is based on ascertaining resource for equipment or human variables that are not needed on a full-time basis. Such efforts seek to obtain viable options with the aim of justifying the application. For instance, the medium-size business keeps technical maintenance and expertise at bay for occasional needs (Seavey, McGrath & Aytur, 2014). The immediate costs of training and hiring engineers with competence in computer support show highly beneficial instruments for organizations to outsource the tasks.

Further, large-scale provision of opportunities and functions that help in saving the best workers guarantees stimulation of consumer environments. The service providers show a high level of operational experience and expertise that is expected to provide a higher concentration of staff to organizational tasks above internal operations (Seavey, McGrath & Aytur, 2014). The component of flexibility is another reason for the outsourcing function in different situations. Outsourcers' contracts and jobs of respective employees depend on the level of flexibility to achieve changing business environments.

However, the authors mentioned some disadvantages to outsourcing. The main shortcoming of outsourcing includes loss of managerial control on the outsourced operations, a threat to confidentiality and security, hidden costs, reallocation of existing teams and quality problems. Issues relating to losing control of outsourced operations are based on the fact that management of external resources requires special skills that are a combination of contract management, process management and skills of people, and power negotiation. Further, most outsourcing contracts have security and confidentiality terms spelled out without execution and audit processes. The financial services show requirements of keeping information known to the administration and away from traders, brokers and other individuals who could use the insider information improperly (Seavey, McGrath & Aytur, 2014). Lastly, the reason for outsourcing is an expectation of receiving better service from outsourcer as compared to internal staff. Outsourcer should be chosen in a way that ensures that there is a positive influence on the quality of services and goods produced. Otherwise, firms stand to lose their position in markets.

The false conception on outsourcing is that it solely focuses on cost cutting benefits. The lower costs emerge from the termination of the in-house performance for non-value adding operations and greater economies of scale attained by the vendors (McLaughlin & McLaughlin, 2014). Outsourcing allows companies to focus on the main activities that were neglected through dispersed management attention for the offered timelines and saving benefits with increased productivity levels. The focus permits the leadership of responsiveness to market changes. The diversification of organizations promotes the decision on buying activities and expertise that lack while finding interest in the development. The outsourced elements enable managers to continue reevaluating business processes while eliminating hidden costs and increasing greater expenditure accountability. The agreed contractual terms have an obligation to vendors that is not imposed on internal departments. Outsourced activities bring cash infusion for revenues generated through asset renting or selling.

Why are institutions the key to quality improvement?

One of the components of quality improvement is employee involvement. This is a system process aimed at creating cooperation within the health care organization while tapping on creative contributions for each member. The success of an organization in the improvement of performance is dependent on the motivation and skills of its workforce (Seavey, McGrath & Aytur, 2014). All employee development efforts align human resource development with change processes and strategic plans. The focus also enhances the empowerment of workforces and formation of partnerships between workers and managers. The quality improvement realm also builds high levels of commitment towards common purpose while setting out clear performance goals and approaches (McLaughlin & McLaughlin, 2014).

Traditional attempts to influence and persuade clinicians to induce behavioral change including compliance with protocols or vigilance for drug interactions largely failed. However, the main interest was to improve the quality of patient care at hand. There were many recommendations from health care committees and peer groups to achieve an improved quality and safety of patient care while minimal evidence shows that clinicians changed their practice (Seavey, McGrath & Aytur, 2014). The evidence publication in peer-reviewed journals is not necessary to lead to change the practice of clinicians. Different articles outline the measures of best practice while making urgent recommendations to quality changes resulting from new information. Structure improvement includes financial, physical, human, and technological assets, which in practice possesses the undertaken works. Quality improvement examines characteristics in terms of number, quality, mix, adequacy, and location of the health IT staff, consultants and resources, physical space, and financial resources. The workflows, tasks, or activities carried out in the process achieve outcome or output are considered processes. Despite the existing strategies for the literature focus on common clinical processes through applied administrative processes. The function meets meaningful use for the core objectives support key administrative and clinical processes.

Process improvement is another quality improvement component. The system process involves incremental elimination of each barrier to achieving good performance. The component addresses the effectiveness and efficiency of organizations in administration processes and technical work influencing customer's quality perception of the service or product. Process improvement aspects are developed along the principles that environments that people have opportunities of incrementally and continually improve the organization work forms basis to improve the organization (Seavey, McGrath & Aytur, 2014). Proper interrelationships among management principles are critical to achieving organizational objectives. The system has an interrelationship with work components coupled with the organizational strategic aim and common purpose. Further, outsourcing provides companies with a possibility of accessing highly qualified personnel who are otherwise unavailable to client organizations (McLaughlin & McLaughlin, 2014). There is a full exploitation of the suppliers' innovations, specialist capabilities, and investments.