It’s stating the obvious to say that in healthcare, emotions can run high. Conflicts with patients, families, co-workers, and staff are just part of the process. What most people miss is the opportunity that is present within any conflict. Successful conflict resolution often presents the greatest opportunity to strengthen a relationship.

Most of us have heard the enthusiastic cry of “hua” (hoo-ah) from a group of soldiers in response to an officer. What you may not know is that “hua” isn’t just a shout to express energy or excitement. “Hua” stands for “heard,” “understood,” and “acknowledged.” In the military, this is a confirmation to an officer or fellow soldier that the message went through. In our world, “hua” can help us remember the essential steps in conflict resolution or problem recovery.

We have all experienced the maddening frustration of not being listened to or understood in the face of a problem. It makes everything much, much worse. We’ve also experienced the amazing transformation of going from anger to relief to gratitude when someone listens to our problem and demonstrates that he understands what we’re saying and, more importantly, how we feel; and then acknowledges what we’ve said with reassurance and an explanation of what will be done to help.

Like everything else in an organization, this is a cultural factor. Some groups have a culture of aggression. It’s an inefficient, ineffective way to work. Top performing organizations have a culture of assertive, honest conflict resolution, where there’s no hidden meaning, passive aggression, or focus on blame. The focus is where it should be, on resolving the problem and strengthening the relationship. It’s easy to be aggressive. It takes no thought and no intelligence. It’s tougher to master conflict resolution. But the payoff is that you create opportunities in the face of problems.