Moving from service to sustainable services: a healthcare case study

Hope, goal-commitment and -stress mediating between collaborative leadership, financial resources and performance

Purpose

Combining the goal-setting and job demands-resources (JD-R) theories, we examine how two project resources, collaborative project leadership and financial project resources, enhance high project performance in community-academic health partnerships.

Design/methodology/approach

With a sequential explanatory mixed-method research design, data were collected through a survey (N = 318) and semi-structured interviews (N = 21). A hypothesised three-path mediation model was tested using structural equation modelling with bootstrapping. Qualitative data were examined using thematic analysis.

Findings

Project workers’ hope, goal-commitment and -stress: (1) fully mediate the hypothesised relationship between highly collaborative project leadership and high project performance; and (2) partially mediate the relationship between financial project resources and high project performance. The qualitative data corroborate and deepen these findings, revealing the crucial role of hope as a cognitive-motivational facilitator in project workers’ ability to cope with challenges.

Practical implications

Project leaders should promote project workers’ goal commitment, reduce their goal stress and boost project performance by securing financial project resources or reinforcing workers’ hope, e.g. by fostering collaborative project leadership.

Originality/value

The findings contribute to the project management and JD-R literature by considering the joint effects of project workers’ hope and two commonly studied project resources (collaborative project leadership and financial project resources) on high project performance. Moreover, we demonstrate the importance of the goal-setting and JD-R theories for understanding complex health-promotion projects connecting academic to community work.

Online technology: Sustainable higher education or diploma disease for emerging society during emergency-comparison between pre and during COVID-19

Even as the pandemic rages on across the globe, the notion of shutting down higher education has never been an option; instead, finding ways to circumvent it has led to a greater reliance on online technology delivery of courses and programs. Although this is not meant as a complete substitute, critics argue that online education has widened the 'diploma disease' crisis. They argued that this would lead to serious long-term problems which may become irreversible. This comparative study was conducted using an 'empirical survey' with 120 students from each group (before and during COVID-19, giving a total of 240 samples/students) to conduct an in-depth study of the academic and job-ready performance of graduates. Findings show that pre-pandemic students did poorly academically compared to during-pandemic counterparts. On the other hand, pre-pandemic graduates achieved better job-readiness scores which included both aptitude and practicum. Moreover, both groups achieved well in terms of academic performance compared to their job-readiness scores. This leads to the question: is it the role of HE to value the concept of sustainable production or to produce certificates/qualifications? Apparently, the HE system has used COVID-19 as an excuse to extend the "diploma disease crisis", a situation that must be addressed by devising a proper policy framework.

Transferring, translating and transforming knowledge: the role of brokering in healthcare networks

PURPOSE

This research examines how knowledge and information are managed within two care networks. We develop a conceptual framework drawing on the notion of brokering and the 3T framework, which is used to describe the relative complexity of boundaries (referred to in the framework as syntactic, semantic and pragmatic) as well as capabilities and processes required to exchange information within the network. Previous research on brokering has focused on healthcare managers and professionals, but this research extends to patients and caregivers. Understanding knowledge exchange and brokering practices in healthcare is critical to the delivery of effective services.

DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH

For this case research, non-participant observation and experienced-based interviews were undertaken with healthcare professionals, patients and caregivers within two care networks.

FINDINGS

The findings reveal brokering roles occupied by healthcare professionals, patients and caregivers support the transfer, translation and transformation of knowledge and information across functional and organisational boundaries. Enablers and disablers to brokering and the exchange of knowledge and information are also identified.

RESEARCH LIMITATIONS/IMPLICATIONS

The study is limited to two care networks for long-term conditions within the UK. Further research opportunities exist to examine similar care networks that extend across professional and organisational boundaries.

PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS

This research informs healthcare professionals of the brokering capabilities that occur within networks and the enabling and disabling factors to managing knowledge across boundaries.

ORIGINALITY/VALUE

This paper provides a conceptual framework that categorises how increased levels of knowledge and information exchange and brokering practices are managed within care networks.

Does online technology provide sustainable HE or aggravate diploma disease? Evidence from Bangladesh-a comparison of conditions before and during COVID-19

Higher education (HE) serves to produce well trained and job-ready graduates. Despite this belief, whether HE produces certificates/qualifications or job-ready graduates-this debate remains unsettled. To date, the current COVID-19 pandemic which erupted in late 2019 continues to create much economic, social and political dislocation throughout the world. Consequently, one outcome for HE during this crisis is the much greater dependence on online/digital technology to deliver courses and programs. Although it is not considered to be a complete substitute, critics argue that education delivered through online technology has expended the 'diploma disease' crisis and subsequently may pose a threat to the viability of producing HE graduates. It has been suggested that this can result in significant long-term problems that may be impossible to recover from. This study was based on a 'empirical survey' where the sample incorporated 240 people in two groups (before and during COVID-19, for a total of 120 in each), and the objective was to examine academic and job-readiness of graduates in greater depth. Findings demonstrate that pre-pandemic students scored poorly academically compared to their post-pandemic classmates. Pre-pandemic graduates, on the other hand, had higher work readiness scores in terms of both aptitude and practical aspects. Furthermore, both groups outperformed their job-readiness scores in terms of learning performance. This raises the question: is it the job of higher education to promote sustainable production of graduates or deliver certificates and degrees? COVID-19 appears to have been utilised by the HE system as an excuse to exacerbate the "diploma disease crisis," a scenario that must be resolved by developing a proper policy framework that allows HE to play the necessary role in an emergency. Meaningful measures should be taken so that online technology is employed properly in this situation.