How are you at setting #boundaries? Is this your superpower? How about #negotiating? These could be important. Please allow me to explain. In one of the #hospitals where I worked, several of the #nurses voiced the concern that mobile phones were no longer necessary. In fact, they felt cell phones had become a curse! This may not seem logical, so allow me to explain.
These nurses had no opportunity to use their phones at work, except perhaps at lunch break to contact family or scroll through social media. Once they were off duty, they immediately shut the phone off in fear of being called back to the #hospital. You see, the hospital was so short staffed, that the nurse manager would call even when they weren’t on call or back up call. They could no longer use their phone as a tool for their families to call in an #emergency. If they were to get another cell phone for emergency use, they were under contract to reveal that number to the hospital. It became very stressful for these individuals.
A little research show that it’s not just nurses who are caught in such situations. It happens throughout the hospital. I know #physicians who get trapped in these types of things, yes #doctors. I know of doctors who live in town, who have partners who live further out in rural areas. These rural docs have sketchy phone service or can’t get to the hospital in bad weather. The doctor who lives in town will shut his or her phone off at night, only to have the police or town sheriff show up at their door at all hours of the night because the Emergency Room doctor wants to see them.
You know who gets blamed for this? The #administrator. Yet, not one administrator was involved in making those calls. Something is broken, because all of this was happening prior to the pandemic, and it’s only gotten worse. We need experts who have the knowledge and flexibility to come up with solutions that work for all parties. Someone who can look at the big picture, pull together the entire healthcare community and take definitive action. It must be action that makes sense, uses up to date technology, and is fair for all parties.
I’m not saying that Administrators aren’t responsible. They hold the ultimate responsibility for what happens in hospitals. Furthermore, they hold all the bargaining chips. If you ever want to have any freedom over your life as a #healthcareworker, you must learn how to set boundaries and #negotiate with them. When you become an expert at this and master the technology behind it, you can teach and inspire your team to do the same. #Boundarysetting and negotiating are not magic. They’re learned #communication skills. Follow me for more information like this. I’m Nan Nuessle, MD of Beat Down Burnout.
#CommunicationSkills #EffectiveCommunication #Values #Leadership #LeadershipDevelopment #WorkplaceSafety #StaffSatisfaction #PatientSafety
