Organizational Energy and Its Influence on Quiet Quitting and Service Quality in Hospitals

Abstract

Worldwide healthcare institutes face a huge pressure to maintain service excellence amid resource constraints and workforce challenges. This study explores how organizational energy affects quiet quitting behaviours, and service quality in hospital settings, focusing to address a critical gap in understanding how employee psychological states influence patient care outcomes. A quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted across 72 hospital departments/ units. Organizational energy was measured using the OEQ 12 questionnaire assessing four energy states (productive, comfortable, resigned, and corrosive energy). Quiet quitting was evaluated through a 9-item scale measuring disengagement behaviours and withdrawal of discretionary effort. Service quality was assessed using the SERVPERF instrument, capturing patient perceptions across five dimensions (tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy). Data were collected from healthcare professionals (3-4 per unit) for energy and engagement measures, and from patients/attendants (3-4 per unit) for service quality assessments, then aggregated at the departmental level. Strong correlations emerged between all variables: organizational energy positively correlated with service quality and negatively with quiet quitting, while quiet quitting showed a strong negative association with service quality. Regression showed that organizational energy significantly predicted higher service quality and lower quiet quitting, and multiple regression indicated that organizational energy and quiet quitting jointly explained about 53.5% of the variance in service quality at the departmental level, with organizational energy emerging as the stronger predictor. The findings confirm that organizational energy and quiet quitting are significant determinants of patient-perceived service quality in hospital departments. Units with higher energy demonstrate superior service outcomes, while disengagement behaviours substantially undermine care quality. These findings suggest that healthcare leaders should prioritize interventions to enhance organizational energy through supportive leadership and recognition while addressing factors contributing to employee disengagement to improve patient care experiences.