Managing Low-To-Mid Intensity Conflict in the Health Care Setting. (Part 2: Conflict Management)‪.‬

CONFLICT MANAGEMENT skills are essential in the portfolio of an effective physician executive and will become even more critical as complexity and urgency trigger more discomfort and fear among the diverse contributors to the health care industry." The July/August issue of The Physician Executive cited a flashmail survey to which 115 members responded, saying they spent at least 20 percent of their work time dealing with conflict. (1) A number of helpful articles in that issue emphasized appropriate use of formal negotiation, mediation, and other alternative dispute mechanisms in health care settings. This article focuses on the application of five major conflict management strategies to the low-to-mid intensity conflicts plaguing most physician executives. Conflict may be defined as a situation In which two or more people cannot agree on the actions that one person takes or that he or she doesn't want the other to take. (2) This definition embodies the three themes that Kenneth Thomas suggests are common to most definitions of conflict: (1) perceived incompatibility of Interests; (2) some interdependence of the parties; and (3) some form of interaction. (3) Thus, conflict is not inherently negative or destructive; like most other experiences, it is what one makes of it.