By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    healthcare cybersecurity
    4 Helpful Tips on How to Protect Your Medical Practice Against Cyber Attacks
    October 24, 2021
    Health Check Diagnosis Medical Condition Analysis Concept
    6 Health Woes With Online Remedies
    January 19, 2022
    Eight Things Men Should Know About the Male Menopause
    Eight Things Men Should Know About the Male Menopause
    April 24, 2022
    Latest News
    Beyond Nutrition: Everyday Foods That Support Whole-Body Health
    June 15, 2025
    The Wide-Ranging Benefits of Magnesium Supplements
    June 11, 2025
    The Best Home Remedies for Migraines
    June 5, 2025
    The Hidden Impact Of Stress On Your Body’s Alignment And Balance
    May 22, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    healthy nursing school habits
    Healthy Habits for Nursing Student Nursing School Students
    May 24, 2024
    High Deductables
    High-Deductible Insurance and Rising Bad Debt
    July 24, 2015
    How People Are Taking Advantage of Health Deals in the Recent Recession
    February 5, 2021
    Latest News
    Top HIPAA-Compliant Messaging Apps for Healthcare Teams
    June 25, 2025
    When Healthcare Ends, the Legal Process Begins: What Families Should Know About Probate and Medical Estates
    June 20, 2025
    Preventing Contamination In Healthcare Facilities Starts With Hygiene
    June 15, 2025
    Strengthening Healthcare Systems Through Clinical and Administrative Career Development
    June 13, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Will Pay-for-Performance Make You a Better Doctor?
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Business > Finance > Will Pay-for-Performance Make You a Better Doctor?
BusinessFinanceHospital AdministrationPolicy & Law

Will Pay-for-Performance Make You a Better Doctor?

Lonnie Hirsch
Last updated: January 16, 2015 9:00 am
Lonnie Hirsch
Share
5 Min Read
pay for performance in healthcare
SHARE

pay for performance in healthcareAt an altitude of 30,000 feet, the healthcare reform objectives that link financial incentives to performance shine brightly. There are no protesting voices calling for poor outcomes, more medical errors or higher costs.

pay for performance in healthcareAt an altitude of 30,000 feet, the healthcare reform objectives that link financial incentives to performance shine brightly. There are no protesting voices calling for poor outcomes, more medical errors or higher costs.

Taking a playbook page from the corporate world, financial incentives and penalties are intended to drive performance improvements in healthcare delivery. But it’s reasonable to wonder how well big business theory—manufacturing thousands of new automobiles, for example—compares to the infinite variables, personal and one-to-one practice of medical arts.

And, while the goals are admirable, physicians, hospitals, medical groups and other healthcare providers question the validity of the standardized tools that are supposed to measure and reflect quality and efficiency.

More Read

Ireland Reveals Its Patient Stories
The Happy Advantage – Shawn Achor Video [Amazing]
5 Reasons Hospital Marketing Will Benefit by Devising Digital Plans
5 Bits of Actionable Info from AAOS 2014 for Your Ortho Department
The Second Wave of Healthcare Informatics

A definitive report as to success or failure is somewhere down the road—along with how the nation’s Affordable Care Act eventually plays out in the real world. But related indicators show mixed results at best. Pay-for-performance doesn’t seem to make for better doctors or better outcomes.

  • Often cited is a pay-for-performance study appearing in the New England Journal of Medicine titled, The Long-Term Effect of Premier Pay for Performance on Patient Outcomes. The comparison between hospitals with and without performance incentives concluded: “We found no evidence that the largest hospital-based pay-for-performance program led to a decrease in 30-day mortality.” N Engl J Med 2012; 366:1606-1615
  • A study in the UK’s single-payer National Health System provided a large financial incentive for general practitioners achieving high quality care measures for patients with hypertension and other diseases. “Conclusions: Good quality of care for hypertension was stable or improving before pay for performance was introduced. Pay for performance had no discernible effects on processes of care or on hypertension related clinical outcomes.” BMJ 2011;342:d108

So… Does “pay or penalty” motivate people?

Author and lecturer Dan Pink has a revealing talk titled The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us. He observes that “carrot or stick” motivators are not always effective, and that people “are not as endlessly manipulable and predictable as you would think.”

Take ten minutes to watch the delightful animated version of his presentation (link below). It illustrates what many academic studies show about the concept of reward and punishment as motivation tools, and what actually works.

A study at MIT—having to do with human motivation and not about healthcare directly—studied the typical organizational scheme of rewarding top performers and ignoring bottom performers. Findings included:

  • As long as the task involved only mechanical skill, bonuses work as expected; but
  • Once the task called for cognitive skill, reward led to poorer performance.

Academic studies appear to agree that money is not always a motivator, and that there are three factors that lead to better performance and personal satisfaction. Perhaps, not surprisingly, these three factors all resonate with medical professionals:

  • Autonomy – the desire to be self-directed
  • Mastery and Challenge – the urge to improve and make a contribution
  • Purpose – companies with a higher purpose flourish

It remains to be seen how effectively healthcare’s present-day, pay-for-performance system will drive the intended improvements, or make better doctors and outcomes.

Daniel Pink’s RSA presentation concludes, however, that if business models can get past the carrot and stick ideology, and look at the science, society can build better organizations with the promise of building a better world.

Daniel Pink Motivation

For more about the surprising truth about what motivates us, watch the animated version here.

Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

women dental care
What Is a Smile Makeover and How Much Does It Cost?
Dental health
June 30, 2025
HIPAA-Compliant Messaging Apps
Top HIPAA-Compliant Messaging Apps for Healthcare Teams
Global Healthcare Policy & Law Technology
June 25, 2025
recovering from injury
Rebuilding After Injury: Path to Physical and Emotional Recovery
News
June 22, 2025
scientist using microscope
When Healthcare Ends, the Legal Process Begins: What Families Should Know About Probate and Medical Estates
Global Healthcare
June 18, 2025

You Might also Like

Why drug price regulation should not be ruled out

October 1, 2015
Risk Management
BusinessHospital Administration

Risk Management 101: Types of Risk

May 9, 2014
Oil Rig Injury
Health care

Critical Healthcare Steps Following an Oil Rig Injury

August 12, 2024

Healthcare Landing Pages That Actually Work: The What, Why and How

April 18, 2013
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?