[A guest blog from Wendy Perera, MBA, MSN, BSN, RN, PMGT-BC, NEA-BC, Alumnus CCRN
Chief Nurse Executive ~ PereraHealth. Part 1 of a 3 part series on healthcare communication]
Effective healthcare workplace communication. It’s an important topic of discussion as much of what is said by healthcare team members focuses on the lack of effective communication tools for today's healthcare teams.
This post is the first in a series of three and addresses the current communication tools utilized in healthcare settings. It explains why general-purpose tools such as, say, email, 1:1’s, and annual employee engagement surveys no longer provide meaningful value for healthcare. The next blog addresses transparency and the third trust.
Defining “Healthcare” and “Health Care”
The difference a single space can make! Distinguishing between "healthcare" and "health care" is more often considered a lesson in grammar than in semantics. But knowing the difference, well, makes a difference.
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, "health care” was first used in 1906 and refers to "efforts made to maintain, restore, or promote someone’s physical, mental, or emotional well-being, especially when done by trained and licensed professionals."
Today, we refer to these professionals as “providers” within “healthcare” (one word) organizations, which, BTW, are also labeled “providers.” According to the English Oxford Dictionary “healthcare” relates to both individual and organizational providers delivering “health care” (two words) to patients.
Literature Search for Communication in Healthcare
When researching existing literature on communication in healthcare, numerous resources are providing educational content for providers on effective ways to communicate with patients and digital innovations help patient communication in health care. Nothing substantive seems to exist to aid team member communication about workplace issues in healthcare.
The lack of literature sources reflects the lack of communication tools in use. After all, we are hearing more about workplace issues on TikTok and other social media platforms than we are within our own healthcare organizations.
One article from late 2019, however, stood out, but not for its practicality or usability for today’s healthcare teams. If anything, it sheds light on current challenges teams say they are facing, and the lack of communication platforms accessible to them.
Purposely not citing the author or article to avoid unnecessary provocation, I suspect even the author may have since reconsidered its relevance in post-pandemic times. The article notably highlighted email as a primary communication tool, and further seemed focused on accountability. Stating that every staff member with an organization provided email should be held accountable for reading all the emails they receive every day they work. Team members tell us their leaders want them to send them emails with workplace concerns. These same team members tell us their work structure does not afford them the ability to easily write, read or respond to emails in the course of their day's work. In these instances, team members use sticky-notes, torn pieces of paper towel, or printer paper to communicate workplace needs. We believe the sticky note is the real unsung hero that has probably facilitated more meaningful communication all these years, than some of the resources leaders believe they have access to. In the absence of available scientific research, we set out to validate what we have heard, through a platform, team members have become increasingly comfortable using…social media.
Our cover image shows the results of two social media polls regarding emails. Team members share a daily average of 25–100 emails. A follow-up poll asked respondents how many unread emails they had. While 35% managed to read all their emails, 65% struggled with this expectation.
Current Resources in the Workplace and Do They Actually Improve a Team Members Work Environment.
Healthcare organizations are well-known for deploying innovative tools and cutting-edge technology in the patient care realm. This is not at all the case in the adoption of communication tech to improve communication among healthcare team members, particularly in regard to voicing workplace issues.
Let’s discuss the 1:1 team member rounds, designed to gather feedback on "what needs improving in your work environment" and "what resources do you need to make it happen?" From professional experience, these rounds can be effective when conducted with a few direct reports, when you all work the same shift, and meet on a regular basis. So what happens when you have a lot of people to meet with? One organizational work around I witnessed was to change the script from “what needs improving in your workplace,” to “what’s one thing that needs improving in your workplace.” Effectively, this limited the time for each team member, either because the team member needed to go back into patient care, or the leader needed to check a box where they met their weekly or monthly quota. But wasn’t this missing the point of providing an effective means for team members to communicate about what they needed to improve in their work environment?
Let's examine "engagement" surveys. Firstly, many team members perceive them as "satisfaction" surveys. Simply relabeling them doesn't change the perception that they only get asked once a year about their satisfaction with the work environment. Moreover, these surveys often miss certain groups, such as those who have joined the department within the last six months, agency workers, travelers, float team members, and those who choose not to participate. Isn't it crucial to understand the perspectives of all individuals?
What happened to monthly staff meetings? Many healthcare organizations discontinued them during COVID and faced challenges bringing them back. However, even before the pandemic, asking team members once a month for input on their work environment was hardly sufficient.
Shared governance and unit-based team meetings often have many departments struggling to free up team members from their patient care duties to attend these monthly sessions.
Conclusion
Empirical evidence strongly suggests communication tools for healthcare team members are lacking. Since healthcare organizations are responsible for providing resources for their team members to effectively do their jobs. They need to provide tools that foster open communication to let team members share their observations and experiences in a constructive manner that helps solve the issue by identifying solutions.
Yell'o™ is a new way for front line healthcare team members to anonymously post workplace issues and suggest solutions using a mobile phone... right at the moment they observe them...not a month later at some scheduled meeting.
• Be it broken equipment, Pyxis issues, supply concerns, run-of-the-mill compliance matters, or workplace suggestions
• Be it in a surgical suite, a restroom, ICU, ED, the Cath Lab, SPD, back hallway near the loading dock, or wherever
• Be it 2 o'clock in the afternoon on a Tuesday or 2:00am on a Saturday, even if it's New Year's Day
And it’s as simple as, but more advanced than, well, sticky notes… and way better than emails!
👉 Did we mention the issues and solutions are transported directly to the department that can fix them and NOT your over-burdened manager!?
Yell'o™ works to make healthier, safer, and happier workplaces.
If it improves the lives of those caring for your patients, it improves your patient care.
Additional Resources
Could the absence of communication tools in use for healthcare team members be contributing to transparency issues or inadvertently fostering a culture of silence?
Find out more in our next blog.
Author: Wendy Perera, MBA, MSN, BSN, RN, PMGT-BC, NEA-BC, Alumnus CCRN
Chief Nurse Executive ~ PereraHealth
Co-founder & CEO Yell'o™
Contact Info: Wendy@pererahealth.com
Yello @ http://linkedin.com/in/phyello
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