Exam Prep Performance Improvement Ch12

Chapter 12: Performance Improvement

1. The asset provided to an organization by the staff is known as:

a. Accountability.

b. Intellectual capital.

c. Employee retention.

d. Reward allocation.

Feedback: The asset provided to an organization by the staff is known as intellectual capital, which includes ideas, innovations, energies, and efforts.

Page Ref: 205

2. Inspirational elements derived from outside forces include:

a. Public acknowledgement.

b. Award.

c. Reward.

d. All of these.

Feedback: Inspirational elements derived from outside forces include public acknowledgement, awards, rewards, and other external praise.

Page Ref: 208

3. An employee’s drive that is fueled by external forces, such as awards and promotions, is referred to as:

a. Intrinsic motivation.

b. Elemental motivation.

c. Extrinsic motivation.

d. Manifest motivation.

Feedback: Extrinsic motivation is fueled by external forces. These individuals are empowered by rewards, prizes, and public acknowledgement, such as a mention in the facility newsletter.

Page Ref: 208

4. Which of the following terms relates to internal drives that are powered by an individual’s pleasure center?

a. Intrinsic motivation

b. Extrinsic motivation

c. Natural motivation

d. Manifest motivation

Feedback: Intrinsic motivation relates to internal drives that are powered by an individual’s pleasure center. The individual has an interest in the activity and gets pleasure from participation.

Page Ref: 208

5. A voluntarily created team of health care providers who care for a patient together, sharing responsibility, is known as:

a. Managed care.

b. A patient-centric facility.

c. An accountable care organization.

d. Unified health care.

Feedback: An accountable care organization (ACO) is a voluntarily created team of health care providers who will care for a patient together, sharing responsibility for all of the health care needs of the individual.

Page Ref: 212

6. Mary is an RN. She is interested in learning about billing and coding. In what type of program should she participate at the hospital?

a. Continuing education

b. Cross-training

c. Interdepartmental mastery

d. Clinical/administrative merger

Feedback: Cross-training is orientation and education regarding job responsibilities in a different role or department.

Page Ref: 208

7. The ability of an organization to ensure that high-quality staff continue working for their company is the concept of:

a. Absolute employment.

b. Exclusivity.

c. Contract employment.

d. Employee retention.

Feedback: The ability of an organization to ensure that high-quality staff continue working for the company is the concept of employee retention.

Page Ref: 205

8. The term used to describe an individual’s reason to act or to describe the forces beneath behavior is:

a. Psychology.

b. Causal interference.

c. Motivation.

d. Alternate explanation.

Feedback: The term used to describe an individual’s reason to act or to describe the forces beneath behavior is motivation.

Page Ref: 208

9. A full-circle approach to health care with the patient in the middle, in full control of the process, is known as:

a. Accountable care.

b. Patient-centered care.

c. Standardized medicine.

d. Holistic care.

Feedback: A full-circle approach to health care with the patient in the middle, in full control of the process, is known as patient-centered care.

Page Ref: 211

10. The true variance between health care facilities is in the ________ they provide.

a. charity care

b. pain-free care

c. insurance billing

d. quality of care

Feedback: The true variance between health care facilities is in the quality of care they provide.

Page Ref: 205

11. All of the following are elements involved in the provision of excellent care except:

a. Knowledge.

b. Skill.

c. Pay scale.

d. Personal attributes.

Feedback: There is much involved in the provision of excellent care: knowledge, skill, and personal attributes.

Page Ref: 206

12. The costs for hiring the less-competent include:

a. Lost productivity.

b. Interviewing time.

c. Advertising the job opening.

d. All of these.

Feedback: The costs for hiring the less-competent include advertising, interviewing, orientating, lost productivity, and liability.

Page Ref: 205

13. Liability linked to hiring the less-competent includes:

a. The commission of fraud.

b. Improved patient care.

c. Staff satisfaction.

d. Intrinsic motivation.

Feedback: Liability linked to hiring the less-competent includes the commission of fraud.

Page Ref: 205

14. The OPM defines five stages of the process of enhancing staff performance. These stages include:

a. Observing.

b. Developing.

c. Punishment.

d. All of the above.

Feedback: The OPM defines five stages of the process of enhancing staff performance. These stages include planning, monitoring, developing, rating, and rewarding.

Page Ref: 205

15. To create a culture of caring within the organization, you should establish employee policies that are:

a. Strict and narrowly construed.

b. Open to interpretation by the professionals within.

c. Fair and reasonable.

d. Designed to control behavior.

Feedback: To create a culture of caring within the organization, you should establish employee policies that are fair and reasonable.

Page Ref: 205

16. Communications with the staff should always be:

a. Based on need to know.

b. Carefully modified.

c. Clear and open.

d. All of the above.

Feedback: Communications with the staff should always be clear and open.

Page Ref: 206

17. On the first day of employment, each new hire should be given a written:

a. List of terms of termination.

b. List of expectations.

c. List of paid holidays.

d. List of administrator home phone numbers.

Feedback: On the first day of employment, each new hire should be given a written list of expectations.

Page Ref: 206

18. The directive “provide your staff with what they need to do their jobs well” means providing them with:

a. Whatever they want.

b. Proper equipment and supplies.

c. State-of-the-art software.

d. Overtime pay.

Feedback: The directive “provide your staff with what they need to do their jobs well” means providing them with proper equipment and supplies.

Page Ref: 206

19. Many of staff will be required by licensing or certifications authorities to participate in continuing education. As the administrator, you should:

a. Encourage this.

b. Demand they do it on their own time.

c. Not get involved.

d. All of the above

Feedback: Many of staff will be required by licensing or certifications authorities to participate in continuing education. Your staff—both administrative and clinical—must be encouraged to keep their knowledge and skills up-to-date.

Page Ref: 206

20. Hiring from within is a good way to retain quality staff; however, you need to remember that a department member and a department manager:

a. Have different vacation schedules.

b. Are two very different jobs.

c. Require different training.

d. b and c only

Feedback: Hiring from within is a good way to retain quality staff; however, you need to remember that a department member and department manager are two very different jobs and that a department manager requires additional training.

Page Ref: 206

21. When you pay someone a salary for doing a poor job, you are actually:

a. Punishing the employee.

b. Avoiding a lawsuit.

c. Encouraging improvement.

d. Rewarding poor performance.

Feedback: When you pay someone a salary for doing a poor job, you are actually rewarding poor performance.

Page Ref: 208

22. When it comes to an administrator’s responsibility to motivate staff, which of the following statements is true?

a. It is up to staff to motive themselves.

b. Organizations of excellence need to fan the flames of motivation.

c. Their salaries should motivate them.

d. They should be grateful to have a job.

Feedback: When it comes to an administrator’s responsibility to motivate staff, organizations of excellence need to fan the flames of motivation.

Page Ref: 208

23. Employees who are intrinsically motivated will be motivated by:

a. A plaque.

b. A promotion.

c. Personal passion to do the job.

d. Competitive drives.

Feedback: Intrinsic motivation is incentive derived from one’s own desire or enthusiasm for doing a specific job or completing a task.

Page Ref: 208

24. As a manager, it is your job to ensure that your staff do their jobs:

a. Efficiently.

b. Effectively.

c. Empathetically.

d. All of these

Feedback: As a manager, it is your job to ensure that your staff do their jobs efficiently, effectively, and empathetically.

Page Ref: 209

25. A document that will permit you to provide each individual in your department or your division the feedback needed to continue to improve and grow professionally is known as a:

a. Performance Improvement Plan.

b. Total Quality Improvement Plan.

c. Continuous Quality Management Plan.

d. Personnel Improvement Plan.

Feedback: A performance improvement plan is documentation of a staff member’s current skills as well as a list of those skills that need to be improved and what action(s) should be taken to ensure that improvement.

Page Ref: 209