A Happier Nurses' Blog

Didn’t they know I had important meetings to attend?  How could I possibly justify missing a deadline to stop and stitch?  “It’s important” they said.  “All of us are placing stitches in this quilt for our friend to show her how much we care.  Won’t you please place a few stitches?”

 

I’ve replayed that conversation over and over in my mind and each time I ask myself “How many times have I passed up the opportunity to show someone I cared?”  Have tasks become more important than the feelings of the people I serve?

 

Three years ago I had the pleasure of speaking at the Pinning Ceremony of graduating nurses at Towson University in Maryland.  My intention was to share with these new nurses how we transition in our practice from the head to the hand and finally to the heart.  I thought about that talk recently as I asked myself where was I in that transition?  Had I lost sight of the “Heart” of Caring?”

 

I shared with these new nurses that the “head” initially spends so much time absorbing all the new technology, interacting with co-workers and physicians and learning to critically think that “it” doesn’t always connect the fact that the patient we are caring for is someone’s mother, brother, father or child. We sometimes miss the frightened look in the eyes of the patient or concern on a parent’s face.  Getting the tasks done, the charting completed and clocking out on time is the goal.  Was I taking the time to really “see” what was most important in my day to day activities?

 

It’s then that the “hands” take over.  They are so skilled! Those hands that start IVs, pass medications, control bleeding and do a multitude of other tasks so efficiently and effectively.  Are they not also best used in the loving service to our patients – to touch, to soothe and to hold? The use of our hands reflects our values and beliefs as we use them to convey caring and compassion.  How have I used my hands recently to ease another’s burden or acknowledge my concern for their suffering?

 

Finally and probably the most important transition is to define our practice with the “heart.”  It is what gives life and meaning to our work. It is the “how” and the “why” we do what we do each day.  It’s what motivates us to pray with the dying, rejoice with the new mother and support anyone who comes to us in need.

 

The quilt, which you will learn more about on the following pages, has become for me a symbol of these transitions and a model for compassion and caring.  How grateful I am to those who gave me the opportunity to place a few stitches.

 

Has the opportunity “to quilt” been given to you today?  Will you ready and willing to respond?  If not you – then who?  If not now – then when?

 

…… and they asked me to quilt with them.  

 

Pat Saunders

My next step included framing a Vision for Nursing that would act as a guide for planning professional growth & development opportunities as well as recruitment, retention and communication strategies for the upcoming year. At our Nursing Retreat this March, several of the initiatives that would be evaluated and/or implemented in Fiscal Year 2008 were highlighted.

Development and communication initiatives such as C.E. Direct, Nursing Symposiums and this Nursing Newsletter have been implemented. Flexible staffing options such as Tiered Staffing I and II, the Internal Traveler and Weekend Option Programs began in June. Creation of an internal float pool is an additional program on the drawing board and one that is highly desirable in an environment with a fluctuating patient census.

Another major agenda item for Fiscal Year 2008 is the development of the Nursing Clinical Ladder. On the afternoon of our March retreat, attendees developed the first draft of the ladder addressing professional growth and development criteria, leadership behaviors, care delivery systems, collaborative practice, and quality improvement expectations at each level from novice to expert. This draft will become the starting point from which the detailed work of building our Clinical Ladder will begin this Fall. Look for information about joining the Clinical Ladder Development Team inside this newsletter on page 6.

So where do we go from here?

More than 100 nurses helped to answer this question when they recently participated in a series of internal and external focus groups held at the hospital. They provided extremely valuable insights into what matters most to them regarding nursing practice, lifestyle issues, recognition, practice models, and recruitment and retention. The themes that evolved will be presented to the entire nursing staff through a series of informal meetings in the Fall.

Knowing that creativity, dedication and teamwork are hallmarks of this nursing staff, I will be looking to you for strategic thinking and planning as we prioritize actions related to specific themes.

Time has a wonderful way of taking care of some of the little things, I am no longer getting lost and names and faces are matching.  Each day I am here feels purposeful.