4 Ways to Improve Your Problem-Solving Skills as a Healthcare Professional

When working in healthcare, you may come across situations that test your ability to effectively solve problems. Maybe you’re working as a medical assistant and struggling to communicate with a patient while trying to obtain their medical history, or you’re a medical biller and coder and having trouble identifying why a particular insurance claim was denied.

These are just a couple of examples that highlight why working on problem-solving skills development is beneficial for healthcare workers. It can help you overcome issues you face at work, as well as at home. With that in mind, here are four ways to improve your problem-solving skills.

#1: Exercise Your Brain

It might be hard to dedicate time to physical activity when you're taking healthcare classes while also working and taking care of a family. However, many of us can find a few extra minutes in our day to exercise our brains.

Brain games help improve our problem-solving skills by enhancing the cognitive abilities we use when working to solve problems, including those related to reasoning, processing speed (how quickly we can take in and respond to information), and working memory.¹ So, take a few moments daily to play learning games and this may help you foster new ways to solve the problems you face.

Start a game of chess with a family member or buy a Sudoku or crossword puzzle book and keep it in your work bag to do at lunchtime. You can also download a brain game app such as Lumosity or Elevate and exercise your mind when standing in line at the store or sitting in a waiting room.

#2: Develop a Plan of Action

Problem-solving is a process. It involves taking a series of steps (in order) to help you arrive at potential solutions. Having a plan in place prepares you to go through these steps when a problem arises.

The American Society for Quality outlines the four steps to problem-solving, which are:²

1. Define the problem. Determine the facts versus opinions and identify what may be contributing to the issue. You’re not trying to solve the problem in this step but collecting data to help you fully understand what the problem is.
2. Look for the root cause. What is causing the problem to occur in the first place? Once you can identify the underlying cause, you’re better able to develop a solution that addresses that base issue.
3. Generate a list of potential solutions and pick the best one. In this step, consider possible solutions and their outcomes. Has a similar solution been tried in the past, either at your healthcare organization or somewhere else? How did it work? What could go wrong? How can you minimize any potential negative impacts? After evaluating each solution thoroughly, pick the one that appears to have the best probable outcome.
4. Sustain and monitor the solution. This final step of the problem-solving process involves continuing to implement the selected solution then monitoring it to make sure it works the way you intended. If it does, great! If not, either modify the solution to try for better results or go back to the list of options you created in the third step and select another one.

#3: Identify Your Personal Barriers to Problem-Solving

Maybe you have a problem that feels incredibly difficult to solve. Or you’re faced with a problem and no matter how many solutions you’ve tried, you’ve still been unsuccessful in your efforts. It’s possible that the reason you’ve not been able to solve a particular problem is due to your own personal barriers.

Two barriers that could get in the way of your problem-solving skills are:³

Mental Set

Having a specific way of thinking of things, which causes you to continue to approach a problem the same way you have in the past, even though that approach is no longer working. An example would be working as a phlebotomy technician and trying to calm a patient’s fears of having their blood drawn using a technique that doesn’t seem to help.

Functional Fixedness

With this barrier, you have trouble thinking outside the box or finding purposes for things that extend beyond what they were designed for. This makes it more difficult to come up with novel ideas. For instance, heart rate monitors are often used to help people exercise safely. These same devices can also help healthcare practitioners see a patient’s heart rate patterns by tracking this information.

When faced with a difficult problem, consider whether your mindset or inability to consider new approaches may be standing in your way. If they are, challenge yourself to expand your thoughts and ideas into new areas.

#4: Focus on the Solution vs the Problem

It can be easy to become so fixated on the problem that it seems to get bigger and bigger. We’re so worried about how we’re going to get the kids to school when our employer wants us to start work an hour earlier, for instance, that quitting seems to be the only answer. But it isn’t.

Instead of focusing so heavily on the problem, shift your focus to the solution. Dr. Sharon Grossman, corporate trainer and business advisor, shares that this can help you grow and succeed when dealing with challenging situations by approaching problems from different angles.⁴

Some approaches Dr. Grossman recommends for focusing on the solution are:

• ‘Flip the script’ and consider the opposite of the problem, which can help you focus on how to attain the opposite. For example, maybe your problem is that you lack confidence at work. Flipping the script might involve telling yourself that you have an abundance of confidence on the job. You might not feel that confidence right away, but taking this approach opens you up to the possibility of becoming a more confident healthcare worker.
• Reframe the problem so you look at it from a positive viewpoint versus a negative one. How does this particular problem benefit you? If you have to start your shift an hour earlier, like in the example above, does getting out an hour earlier allow you more time to spend with your kids at night? Or maybe you don’t have to sit in traffic for as long. Reframe the issue to look for its positive points.
• Break the problem down into smaller, more manageable pieces. Do the same with potential solutions. Instead of tackling a large problem all at once, aim to tackle small action steps over time. This can help keep you from becoming overwhelmed.

Now that you know how to improve your problem-solving skills, you can begin to tackle issues that come your way. Yes, developing problem-solving skills takes time, but stick with it and you can become better at solving problems both in a healthcare career and outside of work, making it well worth the effort.