As disasters become more frequent and severe, healthcare institutions face increasing demands to ensure service continuity. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Korean government urged healthcare institutions to establish Business Continuity Plans (BCPs)...
As disasters become more frequent and severe, healthcare institutions face increasing demands to ensure service continuity. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Korean government urged healthcare institutions to establish Business Continuity Plans (BCPs), yet their implementation often proved ineffective. Embedding Business Continuity Management (BCM) into organizations is essential to ensure the effectiveness of BCPs. This process requires collaboration between management and operational staff, such as nurses, who play a critical role in disaster response and patient care. Most studies, however, have focused solely on managerial perspectives. To address this gap, this study employs System Thinking to explore the process of embedding BCM by integrating both perspectives within healthcare institutions, and aims to identify strategies to facilitate the embedding of BCM and ensure its sustainable implementation.
This study followed three key stages: selecting variables for causal loop diagrams (CLDs), developing CLDs, and identifying strategic points to promote embedding. Variables for the CLDs were derived from literature review and in-depth interviews with 11 nurses. Using these findings, CLDs were developed to depict the causal relationships among variables. The diagrams were classified into three perspectives: managerial, operational staff and organization-wide. A total of 11 feedback loops were identified, comprising two balancing loops and nine reinforcing loops. The analysis revealed that embedding BCM relies heavily on the interaction and close collaboration between managerial and operational staff. When they engage in coordinated efforts, despite the costs each party must bear, it can foster a desirable organizational culture that is pivotal for maintaining the embedded status and ensuring sustainable BCM implementation. Although such a culture takes considerable time to develop, it plays a critical role in maintaining embedded status during the pre-disaster period and acts as a buffer to counter waning commitment to BCM implementation, particularly when disaster outcomes fall short of expectations due to its inherent complexity. To cultivate this organizational culture and respond effectively to unpredictable disasters while optimizing limited resources, it is recommended to focus on strengthening the BCM capabilities of staff through BCM education.
To summarize, embedding BCM within organizations is vital for maintaining essential services during disasters. This requires fostering an organizational culture through effective collaboration between managerial and operational staff. Investing in BCM education offers a practical pathway to support this process. This study provides valuable insights to facilitate BCM embedding, thereby ensuring sustainable BCM practices and enhancing organizational resilience.