Question 1

Which of the following statements describes exempt employees?&#10;A) They are paid at least $455/week&#10;B) Job title determines exempt status&#10;C) Salaries are dependent on hours worked&#10;D) They receive a guaranteed fee for specific work

Accepted Answer

Being paid $455 per week is part of the definition of exempt employees. Exempt is not determined by job title. They receive flat salaries regardless of time at work. Receiving guaranteed fee for specific work is the definition of fee-based employee who is not necessarily exempt because of the amount of the fee.

Question 2

Which of the following benefits is mandatory for employers to provide?&#10;A) Sick leave&#10;B) Unemployment compensation&#10;C) Retirement plans&#10;D) Professional association memberships

Accepted Answer

All other selections, except for unemployment compensation, are voluntary benefits

Question 3

Which of the following best describes staff productivity goals?&#10;A) They are the best measure of work performance&#10;B) They must follow national standards for each discipline&#10;C) They must be measured in the context of other factors&#10;D) They are most effective when punitive measures are applied

Accepted Answer

Because there are so many intervening variables, productive is not the best measure and it doesn't include quality of work. There are no national standards, guidelines perhaps. They are not effective is there are punitive consequences for not meeting them. They should be viewed in context of scheduling, patient acuity levels, etc.

Question 4

Which of the following statements is true of contingent workers?&#10;A) They have guaranteed work assignments&#10;B) They are considered independent contractors&#10;C) They may work concurrently in two or more settings&#10;D) They must limit work to one state

Accepted Answer

They are contingent because work is not guaranteed; rather it is contingent on varying needs of organizations. Some contingent workers are independent contractors but others are employees of placement agencies. As long as they are licensed in each state, they can move to accept assignments anywhere. They may be assigned to work in one place one half of the week and another the rest of the week to assure "full-time" work.

Question 5

What factor is most important in the evaluation of work performance?&#10;A) Documentation guidelines&#10;B) Ad-lib scheduling of evaluations&#10;C) Conducted by human resources staff&#10;D) Input of employee is discouraged

Accepted Answer

Documentation of actions and behaviors contribute to the final formal documentation of performance that is used to set goals and perhaps for merit salary increases. They should be deliberately scheduled on a regular basis and held in response to critical incidents if needed. Immediate supervisors should conduct the evaluations. Employees should be encouraged to self-assess and have a chance to speak during evaluations.

Question 6

How should managers handle minor grievances of employees?&#10;A) Refer them to human resources to avoid legal problems&#10;B) Ignore them to allow time for them to resolve themselves&#10;C) Consider each grievance as a potentially serious matter&#10;D) Attempt to resolve through face-to-face meetings

Accepted Answer

Managers should have a "system" for handling minor grievances to increase employee satisfaction and avoid escalation of problems themselves. Only potential legal issues should be referred to human resources. Ignoring them may cause them to escalate and very few are serious problems for organizations.

Question 7

Which of the following is the major goal of staff mix decisions?&#10;A) Combination of workers that can do the most for the least cost&#10;B) All professions are equally represented to avoid conflicts&#10;C) Equal balance of employees and contingent workers&#10;D) Decrease the staff hours/patient admissions

Accepted Answer

The financial implications are most important. It would be foolish perhaps to expect that there are as many speech pathologists and physical therapists on a staff just because of patient needs for services. There is no formula for fulltime/contingent balance. Although staff hours per patient admission is important information, it does not drive staff mix decisions.

Question 8

Which of the following statements about support personnel is true?&#10;A) They are on a career path for licensed professionals&#10;B) They are assigned very specific tasks each day&#10;C) They receive formal training before being hired&#10;D) They perform assigned direct patient care

Accepted Answer

Although many support personnel may be gaining work experience to attend a professional school, it is not necessarily always true. They receive on the job training and typically are not assigned patient care duties. They are assigned specific tasks to complete which may or may not be the same every day.

Question 9

Which of the following factors has the greatest impact on establishing staff mix?&#10;A) Willingness to work with supportive personnel&#10;B) Type of healthcare setting&#10;C) State statutes for licensure&#10;D) Recruitment

Accepted Answer

Above all, what the law says about ratios of different levels of workers is the major factor. Failure to comply may result in licensure problems, etc. Managers may be able to persuade workers to delegate to others. The staff mix may vary in different healthcare settings, but not because of the setting type per se. It's not good management just to hire without consideration for the appropriate staff mix.

Question 10

What is the purpose of job descriptions?&#10;A) To maintain consistency of work over time&#10;B) To limit autonomous clinical decisions&#10;C) To eliminate the need for pay scales&#10;D) To provide guidelines for work performance

Accepted Answer

Job descriptions should be modified frequently to reflect contemporary work, they should encourage autonomous decisions, and they serve to classify positions for pay scales. They do provide specific yet flexible guidelines for performance.

Deck 8: Staffing Responsibilities