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86 unit 2 | Working Within the Organization CikguOnline
opportunities to identify needs for further orientation ■ Employees are given a reasonable amount of
or extended training (Hayes, 2002; Lombardi, 2001). time to correct any serious deficiencies before
Six months later, the staff nurse and nurse manager other action is taken, unless the safety of self or
sit down again and evaluate the staff nurse’s perfor- others is immediately threatened.
mance in terms of the previously set goals.The evalu-
In some organizations, collective bargaining agree-
ation is based on the staff nurse’s self-evaluation and
ments are used to enforce adherence to fair and
the nurse manager’s observation of specific behaviors.
objective performance appraisals. However, collec-
New objectives for the next 6 months and plans for
tive bargaining agreements may emphasize senior-
achieving them may be agreed on at the time of the
ity (length of service) over merit, a situation that
appraisal or at a separate meeting (Beer, 1981). A
does not promote growth or change.
copy of the performance appraisal and the new goals
must be available to employees so that they can refer
to them and check on their progress. Peer Review
It is important to set aside adequate time for
feedback and goal-setting processes. Both the staff Peer review is the evaluation of an individual’s prac-
nurse and the nurse manager bring data for use at tice by his or her colleagues (peers) who have similar
this session.These data include a self-evaluation by education, experience, and occupational status. Its
the staff nurse and observations by the evaluator of purpose is to provide the individual with feedback
the employee’s activities and their outcomes. Data from those who are best acquainted with the
may also be obtained from peers and patients. requirements and demands of that individual’s posi-
Some organizations use surveys for getting this tion: colleagues. Peer review is directed to both
information from patients. actions (process) and the outcomes of actions. It also
Most of the guidelines for providing evaluative encompasses decision making (critical thinking) and
feedback discussed earlier apply to the conduct of technical and interpersonal skills (Mustard, 2002).
performance appraisals. Although not as frequent Professionals frequently observe and judge their
or immediate as informal feedback, formal evalua- colleagues’ performance. However, many feel
tion should be just as objective, private, skillfully uncomfortable telling colleagues directly what they
communicated, and growth-promoting. think of their performance, so they do not indicate
their thoughts unless informal feedback is shared
Standards for Evaluation regularly or a formal system of peer review is estab-
lished (Katzenbach & Smith, 2003). Whenever
Unfortunately, many organizations’ employee eval-
staff members meet to audit records or otherwise
uation procedures are far from ideal. Such proce-
evaluate the quality of care they have given,they are
dures may be inconsistent, subjective, and even
engaging in a kind of peer review.
unknown to the employee in some cases. The fol-
Formal peer review programs are often one of
lowing is a list of standards for a fair and objective
the last formal evaluation procedures to be imple-
employee evaluation procedure that you can use to
mented in a health-care organization. They
judge your employer’s procedures:
increase the number of sources of feedback and
■ Standards are clear, objective, and known in contribute to a rich, comprehensive evaluation
advance. process (Guthrie & King, 2004).
■ Criteria for pay raises and promotions are clearly
spelled out and uniformly applied. Fundamentals of Peer Review
■ Conditions under which employment may be There are many possible variations of the peer
terminated are known. review process. The observations may be shared
■ Appraisals are part of the employee’s perma- only with the person being reviewed, with the per-
nent record and have space for employee son’s supervisor, or with a review committee. The
comments. evaluation report may be written by the reviewer, or
■ Employees may inspect their own personnel file. it may come from the review committee.The use of
■ Employees may request and be given a reason- a committee defeats the purpose of peer review if
able explanation of any rating and may appeal the committee members are not truly peers of the
the rating if they do not agree with it. individual being reviewed.