Teamwork and Communication in Healthcare

Teamwork and Communication is a very important part of everyday life. This is especially important for the healthcare field, where physicians, nurses, physician's assistants, physical therapists, respiratory therapists, and other coordinate with each other to take care of the patient.

However, there are many instances when there is no teamwork or communication between these team members which results in a negative outcome or been able to solve a problem when it comes up.

       In school we are taught about the importance of collaboration and communication as well as witness good and poor communication during our clinical. From all of this I have learned much about how to incorporate teamwork into my practice as well as promote communication among the other members of the treatment team. One thing is communicating what you interventions you are doing with the patient, for instance when giving a medication or performing a procedure it is important to double check with the orders and notify the other members of what you have done. This is important because at a hospital I had my clinical rotation at, the nurses told me of a time when a medication was given to a patient due to a nurse giving it for another nurse but she never double checked the MAR, resulting in administrating the wrong medication to the patient.

       As a future nurse soon entering into the workplace I plan to incorporate communication and collaboration into my profession. I will set a standard for myself and my team by encouraging open communication with each other. I do not have to be in charge of this team, but as both a patient and nurse advocate it is part of my responsibility to make sure there is communication among

the other members, including physicians, other nurses, assistants, aides, and even nursing and medical students. This is important in order to protect the patient but also protect the members of the team from getting injured or lose their license.

Some people start nursing school knowing what specialty they want to work in while others do not. I was one of them that did not. A benefit of this is having an open mind to whatever experiences occur while on the hospital floors. Through my time through school I have been able to experience medical-surgical, geriatrics, obstetrics, pediatrics, informatics, and mental health. With this, I know I do not want to be an obstetric or geriatric nurse. Bedside nursing does not interest me very much but I know having one or two years experience under my belt would be beneficial to help make me a more well-rounded nurse. I am open to being a pediatric or a psychiatric nurse. Currently, I am going through my mental health practicum which has been an exciting experience! However, nurse burnout seems to be very easy as to shut yourself off to the patients. The most positive experience I have had was during my pediatric rotation. I was able to follow great nurses at a Kaiser Permanete
facility in Fontana. I was able to learn so much as well as see how it is to be a PICU and oncology nurse. The entire staff was great as there was a level of collaboration among the nurses and the physicians. I also liked how the family was incorporated into the patients' care since I believe this is an important part of the patient's health promotion, especially since they are children. Seeing sick children is sad but they have a much better outlook than many adult patients which helps put it into perspective for me. Aside from the staff and patients, I believe one reason I enjoyed pediatrics was because I am quite a kid at heart and has always been able to relate to them no matter how old I am.

However, I have yet to experience public health and critical care which may sway my final decision.
Also, I would like to be involved in clinics which go overseas to help with medical issues and build a relationship to  share the Gospel. I come from a family of nurses who have been involved in these such things. My grandmother, aunt, uncle, and sister have all gone overseas and I hope to eventually follow these footsteps. I know age is not an issue with this as my grandmother is going to Africa at the young age of 82. In the end though, I do not want to confine myself to just one type of nursing. Instead I want to be able to experience different kinds as to give me a variety of nursing care knowledge. As well, I want to be able to realize when I am having burnout so I can move on to the next thing in order to be the best nurse for my patient.

Writing this post reminds me that after this semester I have only one year left until I am finished! Crazy how fast and slow that this journey has been as I reflect on those past years. It feels like just last year I had my freshman orientation but now I am a couple months away from being a senior.

Bullies: The Effects of Lateral Violence in Nursing

Everyone has seen, heard, or has been a victim of  nurse bullies, also known as lateral violence. There are different ways which this occurs whether between a tenured nurse and new nurse, between gossiping nurses, between a nurse and nursing student, and even between nursing professor and student.

        Some things are unknown why this is happening, but many professionals suggest it is a result of it being passed down from nurse generation to nurse generation. I fully agree with this, like many bad habits these things are formed due to people doing it to others since that is what has been done to them. It reminds me of the saying that I have heard years back, "Hurt people hurt people". This simple phrase expresses that those who have been hurt, or in this case bullied, will do the same to others.

Lateral violence does not only affect the nurse but patients and hospitals as well. Many nurses leave for another hospital in order to escape the bullying, costing the hospital tens of thousands of dollars to find a replacement. In addition, patient care can be compromised through a new nurse not asking for help or when nurses gossip in front of the patient. In addition, the victim of the bullying can experience physical and mental ailments just as if they were physically abused.
    
       As a newer generation of nurses we have witnessed many occurrences of lateral violence, whether just a snide remark or slandering behind the nurses back. Finishing my second year in nursing school, I have had my fair share of nurse preceptor experiences. I have seen nurses gossiping about other nurses to me and to other nurses. There have been times which I, as well as many of my cohort, have been tossed aside by nurses because they were too busy to have a student "get in the way". I have seen nurses give a snide remark and be rude when assisting another nurse who needed help. Other times I have witnessed lateral violence from nursing professor to nursing student, whether it is an insulting remark or nonverbal degradation.

          However, there is good news! As our new generation is going out into the workforce we can bring a positive influence to fight the lateral violence. In school we are taught to approach a problem through the chain of command, approaching the person first about an issue and moving up form there if nothing is done. Also, learning from our experiences, rise above and set an example by being the nurses who stop passing on the bullying. In addition, we can document these witnessed occurrences which could help in the future. According to the ANA, there has been legislation passed in California which helps fight this problem. Together, the new generation can change the face of bullying and eradicate it from the field of nursing.

References

Walrafen, N., Brewe, K., & Mulvenon, C. (2012).Sadly Caught Up in the Moment:

            An Exploration of Horizontal Violence. Nursing Economic, 30, 6-12, 49.

American Nurses Association (2013). Workplace Violence. Retrieved from             http://nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/Policy-Advocacy/State/Legislative-  Agenda-Reports/State-WorkplaceViolence

YouTube (2010). Lateral Violence in Nursing. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4McGxc6TRk8

Nursing School Humor

As anyone who has been through nursing school
or has experienced the wrath of a stressed student nurse, knows the joys and hardships we go through.

For me, when stressful times come up I like to use humor to make me laugh and cope with the stress. Whether it is through sharing stories or just laughing at jokes about our common experiences.

Sometimes, nursing students find humor in experiences with patients or how we were when we first started......

......especially when completing assignments..........

Despite some humor areas there are other areas which we have mourned the loss of.....

BUT despite these bad things there is at least one benefit of nursing school ;)