Category: Uncategorized

All nurses want is R.E.S.P.E.C.T! Nursing is one profession that capable adults are treated as immature children

You don’t respect nurses when you do the following

1. Don’t acknowledge that nurses have a life outside of work, otherwise why would you schedule an educational meeting on a one time basis without considering the need for different shifts
2. Not ask for input/feedback when making policy changes that will affect the lives of these capable adults
3. When you send out missives and enact immediate punishment for alleged offences without conducting a thorough investigation
4. When you dictate to nurses without trying to generate inclusion and buy in

Here are things that nurses need

• Nurses need to be heard
• Nurses need to feel they matter
• Nurses need a seat at the table
• Nurses need R.E.S.P.E.C.T

Nurses are capable adults and respect should be something accorded to all groups of people. We should generallybe more mindful and respectful of each others skills, capabilities and in general as human beings!

“Nursing is hard” is a popular mantra that you hear constantly and if you are a new nurse, you almost allow your self to be brainwashed by it. Don’t be!

Yes, nursing does have its difficult days but then, so does every other profession.

The importance you attach to a statement determines how you respond to it. It may be argued that because nursing has added implication of dealing with people’s lives, this makes it hard. But that is exactly what you went to to school to be trained for and why you continue to update your skills on a daily basis.

Don’t let “nursing is hard” school of thought rob you of the joy that is nursing. Find little ways that are important to you to rejuvenate yourself daily and when you are away from work, BE away from work. The work will be there when you get back.

Nursing is not a field of martyrs as some people might make it out to seem- it is a respected profession as has been shown time and again by the public’s vote of trust.

Nursing is a profession which like any other profession has its difficult days. But you should be careful not to let the difficult days overshadow the beautiful days.

Let’s keep things in perspective.

Work place take over occurs all the time. In the field of health care as in other businesses, buy-outs may be at any time.  And depending on how it is handled, a new company taking over should not necessarily mean the worst outcome.

Five Tips in handling new company buy outs

1. Be Informed: Getting information is the first critical steps towards knowing what to expect from the new company. Knowledge is indeed power and the more knowledge you are armed with, the better able you are to face whatever challenges that might come your way and how to react to it.

Do your own independent research on the new company- find out from reputable sources what you need to know.

2. Listen: Keep your ears open. Keep abreast of the situation by paying attention to what is going on around you. Remember also to listen more than you talk.

3. Network: Your new employers taking over is a chance for you to network. Don’t overdo it but be sure to network politely

4. Ask Questions: When ever the opportunity arises, ask questions. Find out what direction the new employers are seeking to take. This is important to know because it helps you determine, if that direction is one that you are willing to take or not.

Work place take over does not have to be a bad thing- it can either be a stepping stone for you or the added push that you needed to get your career on a different track.

You are boss of your career and as such it depends on you to steer yourself right. Don’t leave that control in the hands of another person.

Getting rid of a bad employee should not be overestimated. All it takes is one bad egg (employee) to infiltrate and destroy a formerly good work place culture. It takes work, time and effort to build a good workplace culture and it takes less effort for a disgruntled employee to destroy that good vibe.

As much as possible, try to “rehab” your “bad” employees as best as you can using different methods specifically tailored to meeting this employee’s needs. But when all else fails, do not hesitate in getting rid of them quickly. They will create and cause more damage than they are worth. You do not need that!

Five Ways to Determine a Bad Employee

1. They can but are unwilling to learn
2. They are at the center of most work place disputes
3. They bad mouth their supervisors, upper management every single chance they get
4. They influence new employees and not in a positive way
5. They are very quick to find problems but never offer solutions

This list is not all comprehensive but gives you an idea of what to look out for in a bad employee. When you have determined this, using your workplace employee retention programs, create a plan specifically tailored to the employee and have measurable goals for them in interacting with other employees and building a positive culture.

One of two things will happen- they will either make it or they will not. Sometimes it takes a swift response to preserve the positive culture that you have so painstakingly built. Use it!

Have you had an experience with an employee such as that? Share your comments below and what you did to resolve it.

Nursing in-services are a requirement for health care facilities and recommended for healthcare workers as a way of continuous improvement and keeping up with the ever changing dynamics of technology and healthcare.

The methods, skills and techniques that worked a few years or even months back, may not necessarily be what works in present day. Therefor as healthcare workers, the responsibility both to our patients and ourselves is to ensure that we are best capable in meeting challenges, situations that arise and if not, that we find ways to meet them.

This article is going to focus on how to make In-Services Impactful for the recipient

Focus based

The  educational in-services should be focused based. While there may be temptation to cover a lot of topics in a very short time space, avoid it. Using the Pareto Principle, pick the best focus that is bound to have the most impact on care provided. Covering too much information may mean that you are all over the place and no one retains any of the information

Story Telling

Drive home the focus points by using the method of story telling. Story telling only makes it more memorable and while people may not always remember the topic independently, tying it to a story or some memory makes it easier to retain the message of jog the memory into remembering.

Bullet Point Handouts

If you have an in-service blitz, remember that is a more stressful environment and people will retain little to no information. Be sure to have little take-away in bullet format which participants can take along with them and read on their own downtime.

Create Focus Boards

Selecting a high traffic area, create simple boards that reiterate the focus of the in-services keeping it fresh in the minds of the participants. Remember to keep it simple and put only focus points on the board.

Make it Fun

Almost everyone likes to have fun, so make your in-services fun. Your participants are always your customers, so create a nice educational in-service for them. Have finger foods at the ready and make sure that your Clinical Education coordinators makes it a point to mix and interact with participants and be on the ready to respond to questions with no judgment

Do all these and you should ensure that you have a successful and positive filled  in-service for your participants.