PGI Nurses Welfare Association: Perception and Attitude of the Management of the Institute

Transcription

1 PGI Nurses Welfare Association: Perception and Attitude of the Management of the Institute R. K. Sharma, Kiran Batra Abstract : A descriptive analytical study was conducted at the Nehru Hospital in an attempt to analyse the attitude and perception of the management of the Institute towards the PGI Nurses Welfare Association. This association of nurses was formed in 1974 to advance and protect the interests of the nursing personnel of the Institute. A total of 20 managers concerned with the administration of nursing services in the Institute were taken as the study sample. Data was collected by using a structured questionnaire. Findings revealed that though the management of the Institute has positive perception about the role of the PGI Nurses Welfare Association in achieving the objectives of the Institute, but is not satisfied with the overall functioning and achievements of the association. Key words : Management, attitude, perception, association Correspondence at : R.K. Sharma Reader in Public Administration, Deptt. of Correspondence, Panjab University, Chandigarh. Introduction The management of any institution is ultimately responsible for all that happens in the institution. It is the responsibility of the management to create an environment wherein it becomes possible for the employees to achieve their aspirations and be motivated to give their best to the organisation in achieving its objectives. The relationship between the management and the employees of the institute will ultimately affect the productivity of the institution. 1 24

2 When an individual takes up a job, certain conditions of employment (security, wages, hours of work and type of work etc.) are specified in the employment contract. Along with this a psychological contract also exists between the employer and the employee consisting of unspecified expectations of the employees about reasonable working conditions, nature of supervision, authority etc. The degree to which the institution fulfils these expectations, determines the employee's level of satisfaction. Dissatisfaction with either of these contracts will prompt employees to attempt to improve the work situation often through associations / unionisation.2 The role of the union/association at the workplace is to give institutionalised expression to the employee's expectations. These also set in motion a process of democratisation in the institution by establishing proper workermanagement relations. Associations are formed by the employees to represent their legitimate demands and grievances to the management and to seek the resolution. These are in fact a group of employees organised for the well being of its members both in wages and service conditions and for settling all disputes through negotiation and collective bargaining. Associations bridge the gap between the management and the employees thereby creating a better understanding. These acts as communicators of workers grievances to the management. In 1974, nursing personnel of the Nehru Hospital, PGIMER, Chandigarh, united themselves under the banner of the 'PGI Nurses Welfare Association' to represent their grievances to the management. In 1982, the association got registered under the Trade Union Act, Since its inception, the association has worked to represent the nurses' viewpoints to the management regarding conditions essential to develop their potentials to contribute towards the objectives of their profession and to achieve the goals of the institute. Association has worked hard to provide better promotional avenues for the nurses, better pay scales and improved working facilities to the nursing staff of the Institute. Materials and Methods Nehru Hospital attached to PGIMER, Chandigarh, came into being in 1962 and Nursing Department is one of the few departments that started functioning with the inception of the hospital. This department started with five Nursing Sisters and eighteen Staff Nurses but today it has an independent full-fledged entity, with more than 1,100 nursing personnel, headed by the Chief Nursing Officer. She is ultimately responsible for the working of the Nursing Department. Chief Nursing Officer is accountable to the Medical Superintendent, who is the administrative head of the hospital for its dayto-day functioning. Under the Medical Superintendent are Joint Medical 25

3 Superintendent and Deputy Medical Superintendent, to whom she reports in the absence of the Medical Superintendent. Under the Chief Nursing Officer are the Nursing Superintendent and Deputy Nursing Superintendents who manage the day-to-day affairs of the Nursing Department. Each Deputy Nursing Superintendent supervises one block of the hospital and provides daily information to the Nursing Superintendent about the particular block assigned to her. In each block, there are a number of wards. The Assistant Nursing Superintendent supervises nursing personnel of each ward assigned to her and provides daily information to the block Deputy Nursing Superintendent. Assistant Nursing Superintendents are bedside supervisors and senior Nursing Sisters (Grade I) help them in their work. The rest of Nursing Sisters (Grade I) and Sisters (Grade II) provide bed -side clinical care to the patients admitted to the hospital. Present study is an attempt to analyse the attitude and perception of the PGI management towards the functioning of PGI Nurses Welfare Association. In the present study, a total of 20 managers concerned with the administration of nursing personnel in the Nehru Hospital have been taken as a study sample. To have a better understanding of the psyche of the managers, the total sample has been split into nursing and non-nursing managers. The Medical Superintendent (1), Joint Medical Superintendent (2), Deputy Medical Superintendent (3), Administrative Officer (1) comprise the non-nursing managers (total 7 in number) and the Chief Nursing Officer (1), Nursing Superintendent (1) and the Deputy Nursing Superintendents (11) constitute the nursing managers (total 13 in number). The data for the study was collected by using a questionnaire, which comprised of two sections. Section A for Sociodemographic characteristics of the managers and section B for collecting information on the attitude and perception of the management about the PGI Nurses Welfare Association. Part one of section B had eleven forced choice questions on the attitude and perception of the managers about the PGI Nurses Welfare Association and part two with five open ended questions to have more insight information on the functioning of the association. Results Study results reveral that all the managers are above the age of 40 years. Of the total respondent managers, 75 per cent are Hindus; 65 per cent are from the General category; 85 per cent of them have more than 15 years of experience to their credit and only 15 per cent of them have less than 5 years of experience in the institute. (Table - 1). 26

4 Table - 1: Demographic characteristics of managers N=20 Demographic n (%) characteristics Age (in years) (40) (60) Gender Caste Male 8 (40) Female 12 (60) General category 13 (75) Schedule caste 5 (25) Schedule tribes 2 (10) Religion Hindu 15 (75) Sikh 4 (20) Christian 1 (5) Total service (in years) <5 1 (5) (10) (25) >25 12 (60) Length of service in PGIMER (in years) <5 3 (15) (15) (20) >25 10 (50) Study depicts that out of a total of 20 managers, 90 per cent are in favour of having associations in the institute whereas only 10 per cent are against it. It has also been found that 92.3 per cent of the nursing managers and 85.7 per cent non nursing managers are in favour of having associations in the institution whereas one in each are not in favour of having associations (Table - 2). (Table - 3) presents the data analysis on the attitude and perception of the management towards the PGI Nurses Welfare Association and reveals that 53.8 per cent of the nurse managers perceive that the PGI Nurses Welfare Association helps in achieving the institutional objectives whereas this percentage is 71.4 in the case of non-nursing managers. No significant difference has been observed as far as the perception of nurse and non-nursing managers regarding their attitude towards the role of the PGI Nurses Welfare Association is concerned. (Table - 3) also reveals that 70 per cent of the managers have stated that they discuss policy matters affecting the nursing personnel with leaders of the PGI Nurses Welfare Association. This percentage is 69.2 and 71.4 for nurse managers and non-nursing managers respectively. Only 30 per cent managers have expressed their satisfaction with the achievements of PGI Nurses Welfare Association. This percentage is 15.4 for nurse managers and 57.1 for non-nursing managers. Similarly, 075 per cent of the managers are not even satisfied with the 27

5 approaches used by the association for solving nurses' problems. In the case of nurse managers, this percentage is 76.9 and for non-nursing managers it is However, 70 per cent of the managers agreed that they like to interact with the association leaders whenever approached. This percentage for nurse managers and nonnursing managers is 69.2 and 71.4 respectively. None of the variables regarding the perception and attitude of the management towards the role and functioning of the PGI Nurses Welfare Association has been found to have a significant relation with the category of managers. Table - 2 : Managers in favour of having associations in the institution N=20 Favour Nurse Managers Non- Nursing Managers Total n=13(%) n=7(%) N=20(%) YES 12(92.3) 6(85.7) 18(90.0) NO 1(7.7) 1(14.3) 2(10.0) Values in parenthesis indicate percentages Table - 3 : Perception and attitude of managers towards PGI Nurses Welfare Association N=20 Nurse Non-Nursing Total Perception/Attitude Managers Managers Manager n=13(%) n=7(%) n=20(%) Association helps in achieving institutional objectives 7(53.8) 5(71.4) 12(60.0) Management discusses policy matters affecting nursing personnel with leaders of the association 9(69.2) 5(71.4) 14(70.0) Management is satisfied with the achievements of the association 2(15.4) 4(57.1) 6(30.0) Management is satisfied with the approaches used by the association for solving the nurses' problems 3(23.1) 2(28.6) 5 (25.0) Management interacts with the leaders of the association whenever approached 9(69.2) 5(71.4) 14(70.0) Values in parenthesis indicate percentages 28

6 Table 4 presents the data analysis on the socio-demographic characteristics and attitude and perception of the PGI management towards their satisfaction with the functioning and achievements of the PGI Nurses Welfare Association. Fisher's Exact Table - 4 : Demographic characteristics of managers and their satisfaction with the achievements and approaches used by the PGI Nurses Welfare Association to achieve its objectives N=20 Demographic Characteristics Age(years) Satisfaction of the management Approaches used by the association Achievements of the association Yes No Yes No (12.5) 7 (87.5) 2 (25.0) 6 (75.0) (33.3) 8 (66.7) 4 (33.3) 8 (66.7) Gender Male 3 (37.5) 5 (62.5) 4 (50.0) 4 (50.0) Female 2 (16.7) 10 (83.3) 2 (16.7) 10 (83.3) Religion Hindu 5 (33.3) 10 (67.7) 5 (33.3) 10 (66.7) Others 0 (0. 0) 5 (100.0) 1 (20.0) 4 (80.0) Caste General Category 4 (30.8) 9 (69.2) 5 (38.5) 8 (61.5) Scheduled Caste 1 (14.3) 6 (85.7) 1 (14.3) 6 (85.7) and Tribes Total Srvice (Years) <15 0 (0.0) 3 (100.0) 1 (33.3) 2 (66.7) (40.0) 3 (60.0) 2 (40.0) 3 (60.0) >25 3 (25.0) 9 (75.0) 3 (25.0) 9 (75.0) Employment in PGI (YEARS) < 15 1 (16.7) 5 (83.3) 2 (33.3) 4 (66.7) (50.0) 2 (50.0) 2 (50.0) 2 (50.0) >25 2 (20.0) 8 (80.0) 2 (20.0) 8 (80.0) Values in parenthesls indicate percentages P <.05 Length of employment in PGI and Satisfaction with achievements of assoication 29

7 Test was applied and finding revealed that none of the variable except length of service in the institute has a statistically significant association with the satisfaction of the managers with the achievement of the association p<05. Discussion Present study reveals that all the managers who are concerned with the administration of the nursing services in the Institute are above the age of 40 years and majority of the managers have maximum number of years of experience to their credit in the service and in the Institute. PGI management is in favour of having associations in the Institute per cent of the nurse managers and 85.7 per cent nonnursing managers are in favour of having associations in the Institution. Perumal 3 has stressed that management has been gradually undergoing a qualitative change in its attitude towards unionism. Though PGI management has positive perception about the role of the PGI Nurses Welfare Association in achieving the objectives of the Institute, it is not satisfied with the overall functioning and achievements of the association. Of the total 20 managers, only 6 managers are satisfied with the achievements of the PGI Nurses Welfare Association and 5 managers are satisfied with the approaches used by the association to achieve its objectives. Dhall and Srivastava 4 revealed in their study that majority of the managers felt the necessity of the unions in the institute but they were not satisfied with the unions for redressing the grievances of workers and cooperation with the management to achieve the goals of the organisation. Das and Mathew Manimala 5 also revealed in their study that top-level managers hold anti-union views than the lower- level managers. Similarly Dayal 6 in a study revealed that middle and junior level managers have more anti union attitude. In the present study, non-nursing managers are more satisfied with the achievements of the association than the nurse managers, but this difference is not statistically significant. This attitude of managers of the PGIMER, Chandigarh, towards the functioning and achievements of the PGI Nurses Welfare Association is independent of any association with their demographic characteristics except the length of service. Length of service in the Institute has statistically significant association with the satisfaction of the managers with the achievements of the PGI Nurses Welfare Association p<05. Of the total managers 70 percent stated that they discuss matters with the leaders of the association on matters related to the nursing personnel of the Institute and always interact with the leaders of the PGI Nurses Welfare Association whenever approached with any problem. Findings of the present study clearly illustrates that the PGI management has positive attitude towards the PGI Nurses Welfare Association but is not satisfied with the functioning and achievements of the Association 30

8 References 1 Modi S. Dynamics of Trade Unionism: Perception and Attitude of Workers, Union Leaders and Management. New Delhi: Deep and Deep Publication, Randell S S. Effective Personal Management. West Publishing: New York, Perumal SV. Globalisation and Restructuring of Economy. Indian Journal of Industrial Relations 1994;37 (4): Dhall M, Srivastava KBL. Trade Unionism: Perception and Attitude of Workers, Managers and Leaders. Indian Journal of Industrial Relations 2002; 38(2): Dass H and Manimala M. Are Unions Relevant in Today's Global Economy: A Snap Shot of Managerial Attitude Towards Unions in India. Indian Journal of Industrial Relations 1997; 33(1): Dayal I. Are Unions Loosing Influence.. Indian Journal of Industrial Relations 1997; 33(2):