The Ministry of Health for United Arab Emirates is mandated to employ UAE national health professionals that possess the suitable qualifications (Health Authority-Abu Dhabi, 2012). This is in accordance with Health Authority-Abu Dhabi Personal Qualification Requirements. This geared towards ensuring high-quality healthcare services are effectively delivered to patients. Moreover, the ministry is at the forefront in ensuring that UAE national health professionals employed are given most appropriate training and supervision that can facilitate the development of these professionals in their careers (Federal Department of Nursing: UAE Ministry of Health, 2011). Additionally, the ministry has to define benefits that are to be given to healthcare professionals to attract and retain them in their jobs. The ministry also plays a role of attracting interested students to pursue healthcare careers hence the pool of healthcare professionals that the ministry can tap from in the future.
Recruitment and Selection Strategies
Recruitment is the process by which the ministry of health will seek healthcare professionals and attract potential employees to take diverse jobs in the healthcare industry (Harris, 2012). During selection, those health professionals with the requisite knowledge, abilities, and required skill sets are chosen. The Director in charge of Human Resources in the ministry is responsible with overseeing the recruitment and selection of health professionals. The recruitment has to be transparent and robust to ensure that most qualified professionals are recruited and subsequently retained to enhance the quality of healthcare services provided by the ministry (Harris, 2012). This process should be carried out within the confines of current employment legislation in UAE; this provides the assurance that there is no discrimination and recruitment is safely conducted.The policy of the ministry is to recruit professionals fairly with no bias to age, sex, disability, religious beliefs, race, and marital status (United Emirates University: Human Resource Policy, 2011). In this context, equitable and fair recruitment and selection of professionals take place majorly based to their ability to deliver on the jobs they are being recruited for. In circumstances where numerous qualified candidates are being considered, the ministry of health gives first preference to employing UAE nationals over non-nationals (United Emirates University: Human Resource Policy, 2011). Moreover, the ministry is committed to providing a healthy working environment and culture that will treat all health professionals equitably and equally.
In recruitment and selection at the ministry, all jobs falling under the healthcare experience are treated equally important. The health care professionals are the face to families and patients. Both the direct and indirect caregivers require the same behavioral skills because all have close interaction with patients and their family (Federal Department of Nursing: Ministry of Health, 2011). These behavioral skills include critical thinking, empathy, compassion, decision making, and efficient communication skills.
Training and development strategy
After the right staff has been recruited and selected, they are then trained. The current focus in the UAE ministry of health is to improve healthcare in order to ensure greater access, better value for the patients’ money and provision of high-quality services (The Health Foundation, 2012). The ministry has developed programs to teach health professionals and medical the requisite quality improvement methods.
The types of training emphasized in the ministry of health are available for medics, nurses, and medical students. Continuing professional development courses include on-the-job training, practical projects, collaborative, professional development workshops, and role play and simulations (The Health Foundation, 2012). Training is critical in bettering the health professionals by improving their skills, knowledge, and attitudes. A well-trained health professional tend to transfer the acquired knowledge to patients through better outcomes for patients, efficient resource use, and enhanced quality of healthcare. Moreover, through training the recruited health professionals, the ministry enables the professionals to be motivated in their jobs (Federal Department of Nursing: UAE Ministry of Health, 2011).
Additionally, the health professional are also trained in how to better their human behaviors. These include training in leadership, teamwork and collaboration, management, working on a multidisciplinary program, the psychology of change (The Health Foundation, 2012). The acquisition of these behavioral skills will enhance the value of the professionals and put them on a pedestal to assume leadership roles in the healthcare industry. Furthermore, the wider context of healthcare is imparted to the professionals. This context encompasses issues like accountability of professionals, the execution of their duties in a professional manner within the confines of the ethical code of conduct, the existing healthy policy, and the structure of the health system and how it function (The Health Foundation, 2012). These types of trainings help to expose health professionals to various circumstances and thought processes that expand their knowledge of the medical field and its ease incorporation in solving the health challenges of the UAE population.
Strategies of performance appraisals used at Ministry of Health for UAE
Performance management is majorly concerned of the individual health professional’s performance and their overall development. The current healthcare environment in UAE is changing rapidly, and this calls rapid changes on how human resource professionals in the ministry manage the care-givers. The rapid changes include a workforce that is aging fast, and the shift from volume based health care to the one focused on value metrics (Federal Department OF Nursing: UAE Ministry of Health, 2011). To successfully overcome these rapid changes, the HR professionals in the ministry have grown their ability to develop the capabilities of the ministry’s talent management. They carefully identify healthcare professional having leadership talents, then they develop and retain it to achieve the strategic objectives of the ministry. The ministry is also concerned with assessing talent of various professionals, creating a culture that fosters the development of leadership, and supporting top management teams in charge of health facilities (The Health Foundation, 2012). Additionally, the ministry undertakes to set handsome salaries for the professionals to encourage them deliver in their duties, and remain motivated. The benefits of efficient performance appraisals are greater satisfaction of patients and enhanced productivity of the healthcare professionals.
Many health professionals working under the ministry of health lack knowledge in the social context within which health systems operate and envisaged professional conduct of caregivers. In 2015, the ministry intends to train health professionals in these two areas. The social context under which healthcare systems operate includes participation of volunteers in care giving, elimination of lifestyle diseases through educating communities, and financing of healthcare through fundraising initiatives and causes (The Health Foundation, 2012). The caregivers will be trained on how they can sensitize communities on what to do to stay away from lifestyle diseases like cancer, depression, and high blood pressure. Moreover, they will be trained on how they can mobilize volunteers to provide free services in our hospitals, ensuring a wider reach of healthcare services. Additionally, the essence of caregivers conducting themselves in a professional manner will be communicated to them. It is important that doctor-patient confidentiality is maintained and that at no time there is a breach in these ethical standards (Federal Department of Nursing: UAE Ministry of Health, 2011). The training will be focused on strengthening the ethical standards of our caregivers, and the benefits of next training and development program are projected to be immense
References
Federal Department of Nursing: United Arab Emirates Ministry of Health. (2011). Annual Report. Retrieved November 12, 2014, from http://nas.moh.gov.ae/Annual Report 2011.pdf
United Emirates University. (2011). Human Resources Policies. Retrieved November 12, 2014, from http://www.uaeu.ac.ae/en/about/policies/2011april13_hr_policy_final_full.pdf
Health Authority – Abu Dhabi. (2012, December 1). Retrieved November 12, 2014, from https://www.haad.ae/HAAD/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=WCQpSVIwY1M=&tabid=819
Harris, H. (2012, September 1). Recruitment and Selection Policy. Retrieved November 12, 2014, from http://www.dorsethealthcare.nhs.uk/WS-Dorset-HealthCare/Downloads/About The Trust and Membership/FOI Publication Scheme/Policies and Procedures/Recruitment and Selection Policy IN-163.pdf
The Health Foundation (2012, August 1). Quality improvement training for healthcare professionals. Retrieved November 12, 2014, from http://www.health.org.uk/public/cms/75/76/313/3731/Quality improvement training for healthcare professionals.pdf? realName=XZlZmh.pdf
