For an industry in constant flux, healthcare is notoriously resistant to change.
In some ways, this is good. Quality patient care relies on peer reviewed medical science and meticulous documentation and measurement of outcomes—processes that can take years. In many cases, the resistance to change is born out of a desire to keep patients safe and healthy.
But with changing government regulations, new technologies, evolving patient expectations, and demands for improved quality and accessibility of care—healthcare organizations need to recognize that not all aspects of their operations require the same glacial pace of development. That in fact, the industry’s resistance to change presents an opportunity for organizations that are willing to embrace transformation.
There are a number of opportunities for healthcare organizations to improve their patient experience and quality of care:
- Value-based care, which shifts the focus from volume-based services to patient outcomes and quality
- Virtual and digital care models that integrate telehealth, virtual consultations, and remote patient monitoring.
- Advanced electronic health records (EHRs) to streamline patient data management and improve clinical efficiency and outcomes
- Addressing inequity in healthcare delivery to actively reduce disparities in care across diverse patient populations
- Patient experience initiatives by creating consumer-oriented healthcare systems that emphasize transparency and responsiveness to patient feedback
Convincing an organization to embrace a new change is never easy—especially in the healthcare industry. But in our experience, there are a few common roadblocks that most organizations share. Overcoming the internal resistance to cultural change requires you to understand these roadblocks and meet them with honesty, empathy, and a clear plan forward.
1. Cultural Conservatism
When it comes to human health, the stakes are high. For many healthcare organizations, making a mistake doesn’t just mean a loss of revenue—it can often mean a loss of lives. Because the healthcare industry is focused primarily on what’s best for the patient, safety is often the main priority. But this focus on safety creates a culture that is distrustful of change, as change introduces unknowns. It’s safer to stick with the way it’s always been done.
This cultural conservatism extends beyond the patient-focused arms of the business. Many healthcare organizations are structured with rigid hierarchies characterized by numerous checks and balances and miles of red tape that discourage employees and leaders from embracing change. In fact, employees are often rewarded for resisting changes that appear to undermine long-established norms, traditions, or hierarchical roles.
How to drive change
It’s important to remember that those who are resisting the change aren’t doing so just to be difficult. They’re simply trying to protect the health and safety of the patients and the organization at large. Overcoming this roadblock requires a heightened understanding and respect for the way things have been done. You can’t just come in and unilaterally proclaim that the new way is better. But there are ways to respect the past and present while pushing toward the future:
- Engage key cultural influencers early: Identify and involve respected senior clinicians and influential staff in initial planning stages to gain their advocacy and support.
- Demonstrate complementary benefits: Clearly illustrate how new initiatives align with and enhance rather than replace valued historical practices.
- Create inclusive dialogue platforms: Establish forums where experienced employees can express concerns, share insights, and participate in shaping the implementation.
- Celebrate historical achievements: Acknowledge and publicly appreciate past accomplishments, positioning the change as an evolution rather than abandonment of valuable traditions.
By framing the change as an evolution of their capabilities to improve the lives of patients, you can position yourself as a partner in their mission, rather than an antagonist to it.
2. Workload and Burnout
Everyone in healthcare is overworked. From the stressful and demanding schedules of providers to the myriad regulatory compliance requirements of insurance administrators, there isn’t a corner of the healthcare industry that isn’t experiencing burnout. When leaders propose a new major change, whether it’s introducing a new EHR or an innovative patient experience process, employees tend to hear “more work for me.” Additional tasks related to major changes—training, new documentation procedures, adopting digital tools—can exacerbate existing burnout and fatigue, leading to strong pushback from staff.
How to drive change
Trying to sell an internal change without acknowledging the burden it creates is a quick way to lose buy-in. The optimistic, pie-in-the-sky view may be motivating for the C-suite, but your boots-on-the-ground need to know that you’re thinking about this realistically. Acknowledging potential difficulties isn’t demotivating—it’s an opportunity to demonstrate empathy and understanding. Frankly discussing the strain your staff already experience and working with them to find solutions opens up the opportunity for collaborative change:
- Co-create the change: Bring employees into the change development process and co-design the transition with them to achieve the desired outcome with buy-in from the start.
- Clarify workflow improvements: Clearly articulate how the proposed changes will ultimately streamline processes, saving time and reducing long-term burdens.
- Provide workload relief: Temporarily redistribute tasks or hire supplemental staffing during critical transition phases to prevent overwhelming employees.
- Establish realistic implementation timelines: Set manageable, transparent timelines and checkpoints to avoid unnecessary pressure and clearly communicate these timelines to employees.
By acknowledging the difficulty of what you’re asking them to do, you can genuinely frame the change as something that will ultimately relieve burden in the long run.
3. Lack of Employee Involvement
Many organizational leaders believe it’s their job to set the direction and motivate their employees to follow. But when it comes to driving major change, this kind of top-down decision-making can do more harm than good. Employees who feel excluded from decision-making often resist out of frustration, or because they doubt their leaders understand the actual challenges of their day-to-day workflow. This lack of involvement creates skepticism about whether the proposed changes will actually be worthwhile.
This is especially true in healthcare, where many employees take particular pride in their work. In the case of many provider organizations, every employee is an expert in their own right. Each has their own opinions and beliefs about what’s best for patients. In this case, resisting change they don’t believe in isn’t just a matter of professional pride. It’s a noble position intended to protect the lives of patients.
How to drive change
Employees are more likely to buy-in to a change initiative when they believe their perspectives are understood and valued. This requires more than just a few employee surveys. It’s about bringing representatives from every level of the business into the process from day one to advocate for the needs of each department or segment. But this can only make them feel heard. The real change comes when you actually hear them, and use their input to design the change process together:
- Include diverse employee voices: Engage employees across different departments and roles in planning, piloting, and evaluating new initiatives.
- Act upon staff feedback: Implement formal systems for collecting feedback, ensuring leadership visibly responds and adjusts plans based on this input.
- Create interdisciplinary teams: Form cross-functional groups to oversee the change process and ensure varied perspectives are represented and valued.
- Recognize contributions publicly: Publicly acknowledge and celebrate employee efforts and innovations to foster ownership and pride in successful change initiatives.
Acknowledging that frontline workers possess valuable insights into operational realities fosters trust and respect. And trust and respect are the path to lasting change.
4. Unclear Communication
Your employees can’t execute what they don’t understand. When you don’t take the time to properly communicate the purpose and process of the initiative to them, they are more likely to resist the change. Ambiguous expectations, goals, timelines, or implications for daily workflows breeds uncertainty and suspicion. You may have the most comprehensive change plan in the world, but if you don’t know how to properly communicate it to your boots-on-the-ground, your change will be dead in the water.
How to drive change
Healthcare and corporate environments are full of complicated and incomprehensible communications. But learning to communicate clearly with easy-to-understand documents and visuals is the number one accelerant to change. Implementing these few key changes into your organizational communications will quickly clear the path to transformation:
- Implement multi-channel communication: Use various communication methods—including meetings, newsletters, intranet sites, and digital platforms—to ensure messages reach everyone.
- Communicate clearly and visually: Visual roadmaps and Foglifters® can bring clarity to your change initiative by making information on objectives, anticipated outcomes, individual roles, and the expected impacts of changes on day-to-day operations easy to digest
- Establish accessible platforms for dialogue: Regularly schedule open forums, Q&A sessions, or digital platforms to address concerns promptly, allowing for real-time clarification.
- Consistently reinforce messaging: Maintain ongoing, consistent messaging from leadership, visibly demonstrating commitment and availability throughout the entire change process.
Clear communication demonstrates leadership’s commitment to transparency and accountability. Understanding employees’ perspectives means recognizing the importance of clarity and precision in messaging.
By recognizing resistance as a natural human response rather than as an obstacle, healthcare leaders can foster more inclusive, supportive, and adaptive organizational cultures. Address these four critical areas, and your organization will be uniquely positioned to implement meaningful cultural changes, ensuring better outcomes for healthcare professionals, patients, and communities alike.