Possible conflicts and resolutions at your workplace

Interpersonal conflict is even a healthy part of a relationship since two people cannot expect to agree on anything at all times. But if a conflict is poorly managed, it can easily destroy trust. As a case manager, it is important to develop and expand conflict resolution skills to improve outcomes and reduce stress for you, your clients and your providers in your human resource management system.

There is an imbalance of knowledge and power that generally characterizes the relationship between health professionals and patients, often because the case manager or health care provider is considered an “expert”. This perceived inequality creates vulnerability in a relationship where trust plays a key role, and trust is at least in part a prerequisite for obtaining care. Conflicts can also increase between health professionals when miscommunication, disagreements or perceived misunderstandings can escalate.

How many times over the years have you seen how experienced professionals destroy themselves because they would not get involved for fear of conflict? Burying your head in the sand and hoping that conflicts will escape you is not the most effective way to solve problems. Conflict rarely resolves itself — in fact, it usually gets worse if it is not handled proactively and correctly. It is not uncommon to see what a non-event could have been in a monumental problem if it had not been resolved in time.

If conflicts are treated respectfully and positively, this increases the chances of growth and ultimately strengthens the relationship between two people. If you can improve your conflict resolution skills, it will help your health organization and the groups in which you participate to work more effectively.

It is important to remember that it is usually easier to resolve conflict early in a situation because positions do not take root and negative emotions are not extreme. The following strategies depend on your ability to cope with your stress, control your emotions and pay attention to the feelings expressed by the other person.

Getting to the root of the problem

The more information you have about what triggered the conflict, the easier it is to resolve. It may seem a little simplistic, but too often, we try to resolve it without having all the information we need. Even if you are part of the conflict, it is important to identify not only your feelings but also what triggered the disagreement in the other person.

Looking beyond the present moment

Often, disagreements are not triggered by what happened in the immediate environment, but rather by the luggage that a person brought with them during the conversation. As a case manager, it is important to see both sides of the story, as it allows you to better understand the situation and helps you to be impartial, even if you are one of the people involved!

This essentially helps you to refine your listening skills, paying attention not only to what is happening in the present moment but also to what has happened in the past. Understanding where the conflict is coming from is essential for the other person to feel heard and understood and for you to have a better chance of reaching a successful resolution.

Search for solutions from every perspective

After every standpoint in the conflict has been taken, it is important for each person to also determine how a situation could be resolved. The collection of ideas from both sides helps make them feel understood and heard. This is often enough to resolve the conflict because both sides are willing to compromise when they feel their side of the story is understood.

It is also important to use active listening during this part of the resolution as it helps you become a better listener and shows your desire to find a solution.

You must also recognize what caused this conflict so that it can be avoided next time. The demand for solutions reflects the willingness of both sides to compromise, leading to a plan to resolve these differences and find a successful solution.

Pay attention to your language

In case of discrepancies, it is important to use the “I” instructions. By shaping the thoughts around them, she avoids blaming others or focusing on the emotions or reactions that led to the conflict in the first place. Statements like “They don’t involve me in decisions that affect the health of my patients” can be solved more quickly if they say, “I find it difficult to do the best work possible if I don’t know the decisions that affect my customers.

Although it may be your instinct to fill the silence when there is a gap in the conversation, it is important to allow people who have a difficult conversation to think and reconsider their answers. It can be difficult to schedule time when the silence is unpleasant or when a topic does not have a simple answer.

Negotiate a win-win compromise

Once the solutions are on the table, it is time to negotiate a mutually beneficial compromise. Every time one person feels like they have given more than the other, it can lead to another conflict on the street. In some cases, this may not be possible because a person is more entrenched and has more power.

However, by highlighting the benefits from each perspective, it helps individuals find solutions that can support them. It can be as simple as identifying a stress word that your client can use when they feel they are starting to lose it. It gives them the dignity to withdraw from a conversation and sit down.

Know when to let go

Sometimes, regardless of your efforts or abilities, there are situations where you cannot find a solution. In this case, it is important to know when to leave the table and to realize that you may never be able to agree on this matter.

If the situation has become too difficult, or if you feel that you and your customer or healthcare provider are both rooted in your position, it may be time to use a mediator if the situation requires conflict resolution in order to continue to provide quality care.

Leadership and conflicts

The problem between leadership and conflict go hand in hand. Leadership is a contact sport, and if you cannot or do not want to solve conflicts in a healthy and productive way, you should not play a leadership role. In my opinion, the best way to summarize the questions of conflict resolution is to adhere to the following ethics: “Don’t be afraid of conflicts, embrace them it’s your job”. Although you can try to avoid conflicts (bad idea), you cannot escape them. The fact is that conflicts in the workplace are inevitable. He will find you whether you are looking for it (good idea- more later) or not. The ability to recognize conflicts, understand their nature and find a quick and fair solution will do you good as a leader the inability to do so may well be your loss.

One of my favorite examples of what I described in the paragraph above is the weak leader who cannot deal with subordinates who use emotional deception as a weapon of destruction. Every workplace is plagued by manipulative people who use emotions to create conflicts to hide their lack of substance. These are theatre queens who, when confronted with misconduct and/or poor performance, quickly point their fingers in another direction. They are skilled at using emotional tirades that often include crocodile tears, accusations, small lies, half-truths, and other commonplace manipulations to get away with a total lack of substance. The only thing worse than what I just described is a leadership that does not recognize it or does anything about it. Real leaders do not favorites, do not get involved in tragedies and certainly do not tolerate manipulative and selfish behavior.

The development of effective conflict resolution skills is an essential element in building a sustainable business model. Unresolved conflicts often lead to lost productivity, the suppression of creativity and the creation of obstacles to cooperation and collaboration. Perhaps most important for senior managers is that good conflict resolution skills translate into good employee retention. Leaders who are not in conflict will eventually see their good talents leave the door in search of a healthier and safer workplace.

Although conflict is a normal part of any social and organizational environment, the challenge of conflict lies in how you manage it. Hidden, avoided, or otherwise ignored, the conflict is likely to escalate into resentment, retreat, or provoke internal struggles between factions within an organization.

So what causes workplace conflict? Conflicting positions, competitive tensions, power struggles, ego, pride, jealousy, performance differences, compensation problems, just someone with a bad day, etc. Although the answer to the previous question seems to lead to the conclusion that almost everything and anything creates conflict, the reality is that the root of most conflicts is either miscommunication or the inability to control one’s own emotions.

Let’s look at these two main causes of conflict:

Communication: If you think about the conflicts you have experienced over the years, you will quickly realize that many of them are due to lack of information, misinformation, absence or misinformation. Suppose for a moment that you were lucky enough to receive good information, but didn’t know what to do with it. It is always a communication problem that can lead to conflicts. Clear, accurate, accurate and timely information will help reduce the number and severity of conflicts.

Emotions: Another common error in workplace communication that leads to conflict is the fact that emotions influence decisions. I have seen that otherwise wise leaders place the need for emotional superiority before fulfilling their mission (which they did not always understand at the time). For example: Have you ever seen an employee trigger an angry outburst and draw an unfortunate line in the sand in the heat of the action? If so, what you really saw was someone who wanted to give in to their emotions instead of protecting their future.

The scourge of human existence, which in reality is human nature itself, will always create gaps in thought and philosophy, and no matter how much we all wish that it would not……. it is so. So the question is how to manage conflicts effectively when they occur. It is essential for the health and performance of a company that conflicts are accepted and resolved through effective conflict resolution processes. Although it is important to have a dispute resolution structure, the effective use of dispute resolution ultimately depends on whether all parties are able to understand the benefits of dispute resolution and, perhaps more importantly, whether they want to resolve the problem.

The following tips will help you resolve workplace disputes more effectively:

1. Define acceptable behavior: You know what they say about the hypothesis. Just defining what constitutes acceptable behavior is a positive step towards conflict avoidance. Creating a decision-making framework, using a published delegation of authority statements and promoting sound business practices in collaboration, teamwork, leadership development, and talent management will help avoid conflict. Clearly defined job descriptions so people know what is expected of them and a well-developed chain of command that enables effective communication will also help avoid conflict. Explain clearly and publicly what is tolerated and what is not.

2. Strike conflicts head-on: Although it is not always possible to prevent conflicts, my experience has taught me that the secret of conflict resolution, in reality, is conflict prevention whenever possible. By identifying the potential for potential conflicts and intervening proactively and fairly, you will probably prevent some conflicts from occurring. When a conflict breaks out, it is likely that you will minimize its severity by working quickly on it. The time you spend identifying and understanding natural tensions will help you avoid unnecessary conflicts.

3. Understand the WIIFM factor: understanding the position of other professionals WIIFM (What’s In It For Me) is essential. It is absolutely necessary to understand the motivations of others before sneaking in. The way to avoid conflict is to help people around you achieve their goals. If you look at conflict from the perspective of taking actions that help others better achieve their goals, you will find that there are few barriers to conflict resolution.

4. The important factor: Choose your struggles and avoid conflicts in the name of conflict. However, if the problem is large enough to cause conflict, it is certainly large enough to solve it. If the issue, circumstance or situation is sufficiently important and at stake, people will do what is necessary to open lines of communication and closed position and/or philosophical gaps.

5. Consider conflicts as an opportunity: In almost all conflicts, there is enormous potential for teaching and learning. Differences of opinion have an inherent potential for growth and development. If you are a CEO who does not use conflict to build team spirit and develop leadership, you are missing out on a great opportunity. Different positions that are properly addressed can stimulate innovation and learn in a way that the mind cannot even imagine. Smart leaders seek an advantage in all different opinions.

In the end...

A solution can generally be found in conflicts where there is a sincere willingness to do so. Turning the other cheek, compromises, forgiveness, compassion, empathy, finding common ground, being an active listener, using yourself and many other approaches, will always allow you to successfully establish relationships if the underlying desire is strong enough. However, if everything else fails and the position gaps cannot be closed, do not solve the problem by playing favorites, but by doing the right thing.

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