Embracing tensions throughout crises: The case of an Italian university hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

Background: Previous research has identified some tensions that public organizations may encounter during crises. However, there remains a scarcity of research examining how public health care organizations effectively navigate these tensions to reconcile the diverse interests, needs, and demands from various stakeholders.

Purposes: The study seeks to shed light on the dynamics underlying the tensions experienced by public hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic. It illustrates how different hospitals' actors have navigated these tensions, identifying solutions and approaches that fostered collaborative endeavors among internal and external stakeholders.

Methodology: The study draws on qualitative analyses of 49 semistructured interviews and the notes from two focus groups involving key informants at one of the largest university hospitals in Italy. We also rely on the verbatim transcripts from meetings involving the members of the temporary emergency team constituting the taskforce.

Findings: The results highlight the tensions that emerged throughout the different waves of the COVID-19 pandemic and how various actors have managed them in a way to reconcile opposing forces while unleashing adaptability and creativity.

Practice implications: Hospital managers would benefit from developing a paradoxical mindset for crisis preparedness, allowing them to embrace existing tensions and devise creative solutions to favor resilience and change.