As you probably know, the Joint Commission has mandated civility training for all healthcare organizations in order to combat the rise of intimidating and disruptive behaviors among healthcare employees.  Civility training is tricky…it’s not like teaching a nursing skill or the facts about a disease process.  To truly embrace civility, your employees have to become more self-aware.   Here is some information you can use to start the conversation about self-awareness with your staff:

Self-awareness is when you realize that, although you are not the center of the universe, everything you say and do can affect those around you.

True self-awareness comes when you recognize that your own thoughts and feelings can lead you to act in a way that is either helpful or harmful to others.

Here’s an example of how your thoughts and feelings can lead you to act in a way that is harmful to others: You just paid your monthly bills and realize you don’t have enough money to sign your daughter up for the softball team she wants to join. You are stressed, embarrassed and angry.  You arrive at work to find a group of co-workers laughing in the break room. Their happiness annoys you and you lash out.

Here’s an extreme example of a lack of self-awareness: Recently, radio talk show host, Rush Limbaugh learned that a female Georgetown law student spoke out in support of mandating insurance coverage for contraceptives.  Her stance on the matter angered the talk show host, so he went on the air and called her a “slut” and a “prostitute.”  Then he demanded she post online videos of herself having sex. His words had a negative effect on his listeners, his sponsors, the woman to whom he was referring, his career and society at large.  In his apology he said, “In this instance, I chose the wrong words in my analogy of the situation. I did not mean a personal attack on Ms. Fluke.” Although he was further attacked for a lack of sincerity in his apology, his sentiment was right. Whether you agree with him or not, he has the right to disagree with the woman’s stance.  However, the words he chose were harmful and did nothing to help matters in this situation.  He was upset about the woman’s views and he lashed out without thinking about the consequences.

The bottom line is this:  It’s okay to feel stressed, angry and embarrassed.  It’s okay to disagree and speak your views.  However, when you have self-awareness (aka civility), you know how to keep your thoughts and feelings from translating into harmful words or actions against others.

If you would like more ideas for promoting a civil workplace and fulfilling the Joint Commission-required civility training, please check out a new book published by In the Know: The Real Healthcare Reform: How Embracing Civility Can Beat Back Burnout and Revive Your Healthcare Career.  It provides targeted, action-oriented information and specific exercises to help healthcare workers understand the epidemic of incivility, why it is happening and what they can do right now to make it stop.  You and your employees will find the tactics and strategies needed to put civility to work and resolve the toxic atmosphere that may be polluting your workplace.

Written in a friendly, conversational tone, the book is appropriate for all healthcare employees, regardless of their discipline or how long they have been on the job. You can utilize it with your CNAs, nurses, therapists, social workers and more! If you have any questions about The Real Healthcare Reform or would like information about bulk discounts for your workplace, please call us at 877-809-5515.

Do your CNAs need to catch up on their hours for 2011?  Or, are you planning your 2012 training calendar?  Either way, you don’t want to pass up on this amazing offer… Hurry because it’s gone after December 31st, 2011!

To start, add the TEN regularly priced individual inservices of your choice to the shopping cart. 

Enter coupon code TEN200 to receive your discount.

Click here to view topic list!

Does your organization have multiple locations? Provide ALL of your CNAs with 10 topics for just $200 per location!

For more information on a multi-site order, call us toll-free at 877-809-5515 and ask for Maria Easton.

Or,  email Maria and she’ll help you purchase this special offer for all your locations.

• A hospital in Michigan accidentally posted the medical records of thousands of patients on the internet.
• Four hospital workers (including two nurses) in California took pictures of a dying man and posted them on Facebook.
• A children’s hospital in California accidentally sent 6 faxes containing private health information to an auto mechanic’s shop.
• The health insurance claims form of thousands of patients blew out of a truck on its way to a recycling center in Connecticut.
• A patient in a Boston-area hospital discovered that her medical record had been read by more than 200 of the hospital’s employees.

Prevent a breach in confidentiality within your organization by giving your nurse aides the knowledge they need to ensure the privacy of their clients.  Our inservice, “Maintaining Confidentiality” was just updated!  It contains 25% new information, new discussion questions and activities to promote an active learning environment, and a brand new 10-question quiz.

After studying this inservice, your nursing assistants will be able to:

• Define confidentiality.
• Explain why confidentiality is important for quality client care.
• Describe at least four ways confidentiality can be broken during daily work.
• Discuss HIPAA and its requirements.
• Demonstrate how they can maintain confidentiality in their daily work.

Click here to view a sample page from this updated inservice.

To learn more about this topic or order a copy for your CNAs, call us toll-free at 877.809.5515 or visit us on the web!

Recently, I happened to see a TV commercial about their online learning program.  My first thought was, “What…?  Goodwill has online training?” It turns out that this program has been in effect for more than a decade and has served over two million learners around the world.  And, it’s all free!  How great is that?

The GCFLearnFree website offers “quality, innovative online learning opportunities to anyone who wants to improve the technology, literacy, and math skills necessary for them to be successful in both work and life.” Their list of classes is extensive and includes:

• Computer basics…even explaining what all the buttons do!
• Internet basics such as email and how to “surf” the web for information
• How to apply and/or interview for a job
• Math skills…from brushing up on fractions to counting change
• Reading skills for people who would like to enhance their literacy

They also have a broad range of “Everyday Life” classes, such as:

• Using an ATM
• Reading a bus map
• Depositing money
• Reading a food label
• Making a grocery list
• Using a microwave
• Paying bills

…and many more!

All together, GCFLearnFree offers more than 750 free classes.  Many of them are also offered in Spanish on their sister site: GCFLatino.

On the website, I read dozens of wonderful testimonials so it’s clear that the classes are having an impact.  Here are what just a few people had to say:

“I just tried out the Everyday Life section of the GCFLearnFree.org website and it’s my new favorite! What a great way to teach life skills! It’s fun, interactive, and practical. “

“I just heard about your website and I love it!  I’m a teacher and it will be great to use with my ABE and ESL students.  Thank you! ”

“These courses will enable me to get a better job and be computer literate with up-to-date skills for today’s computer world.”

“Wonderful class and great boost to my confidence. As an older student, I find your classes easy to understand and use. Thank you!”

“I learned some things in this class that I probably should have learned a long time ago in school but I just didn’t get.”

Here at In the Know, I shared the GCF link with all my employees and the response has been nothing but positive.  For example, one employee wants to learn more about Excel.  Another just upgraded to Office 2010 and needs to learn the “bells and whistles”.

So, please take a few minutes to look over GCF’s list of classes.  Like me, I bet you’ll think of a number of ways you might utilize them with both employees and clients!

Happy Teaching!

Linda

I was reminded of that today, in a small way, when I went to the drug store to pick up a prescription.  The pharmacist greeted me and asked how she could help.  I told her my name and she brought my prescription to the counter.  She asked if I had any questions…the usual drill.  Then, instead of ringing up my prescription and sending me on my merry way, she said, “My assistant will be with you shortly.”

Unfortunately, her assistant was swamped with people who were dropping off prescriptions.  And, the “drop off” line kept getting longer as I stood at the register.  This meant that people who arrived after me were being served first.  Meanwhile, the pharmacist stood a mere five feet from the register.  I was the only person waiting to pay, so she could have checked me out in less than a minute.  In fact, in the time it took her to tell me the assistant would help me, she could have been halfway through the process!  Instead, I was forced to wait more than ten minutes for the pharmacy assistant.

OK, I get it.  The pharmacist went to school for a lot longer than her assistant.  And, I’m sure the pharmacist had plenty of prescriptions to fill.  But, she did not demonstrate good customer service to me (the “patient”) or to her co-worker.  She was in full-on “it’s not my job” mode!

We’ve probably all been guilty of ignoring the needs of a patient or co-worker with the justification that we had something more important to do or that the task wasn’t in our job description.  In my work with CNAs, I’ve heard stories that make me cringe: the nurse who brushed off the patient who asked for fresh water because that was the aide’s job (so the patient waited 30 minutes for water).  Or the CNA who ignored her co-worker’s plea for help making an occupied bed…because she didn’t like the co-worker.

We all get busy, caught up with fulfilling the responsibilities of our daily assignment.  But who suffers in the above examples? The patient.  Each and every time.

There’s no way around it:  every interaction between two nursing co-workers has an impact, either positive or negative, on patient care. If you think your staff could use a reminder of this fact, consider downloading our FREE inservice, Customer Service in Health Care.  It focuses on issues like internal and external customers, customer expectations, the price of poor customer service, handling customer complaints…and much more.  Like all our CNA inservices, it provides an hour of inservice credit.

And feel free to share your customer service stories–for example, a story of exceptional customer service by one of your CNAs or a cautionary tale of what not to do!

Happy Teaching,

Linda

As we celebrate Memorial Day, 2011, all of us at In the Know send our deep gratitude to every past and current member of our Armed Forces.  In addition, we would like to honor the 77,000 nursing personnel who work with Veterans in the VA health care system—including the more than 11,000 certified nursing assistants! Thank you for all you do to promote the health of Veterans across the United States.

Here are a few things you may not know about the VA health care system:  (Thanks to the VA’s website, www.va.gov, for these facts.)

• The VA was a leader in the development of home care.  During the early 1930s, a special category of VA “follow‑up” nurses visited Veteran patients at their homes in rural, isolated areas.

• Until 1976, nursing assistants outnumbered RNs.  Today, there is approximately 1 CNA for every 4 RNs.

• In the early 1990s, some 2,300 VA nurses were in the ready reserve of the armed forces at the time of the Persian Gulf crisis.  More than 600 were called to active duty and another 300 were put on alert status. Approximately 3,200 VA nurses are Veterans themselves.

• In 2005-06, VA nursing staff responded heroically to hurricanes Katrina and Rita by assisting with evacuation and continuing care of hundreds of VA hospital patients.

• The VA is working hard to address the nursing shortage by instituting several scholarship and tuition reimbursement programs that support nurses in continuing their education. Examples of such programs include: Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP); National Nursing Education Initiative (NNEI); Employee Incentive Support Program; and Tuition Support Program.

• Every year, nearly 30,000 student nurses gain clinical experience in a VA setting.

• Three years ago, the 4000^th VA nurse graduated with the help of the Employee Incentive Scholarship Program.  The awards from this program cover tuition and related expenses such as registration, fees and books.

To do our small part to honor the hardworking VA nursing staff, we are offering any VA health care facility three free inservices. Each facility may choose their three topics from among our vast library of CNA inservices.

There is no gimmick associated with this offer, no strings attached and no deadline. If you work at a VA facility, simply email us at info@knowingmore.com or call us at 877-809-5515.  If needed, we will assist you in selecting the best topics for your facility.  Your order will be filled promptly—and include our sincere gratitude for the work you do every day.

Happy Memorial Day!

Shelly Sun, CEO of BrightStar

Did you happen to see Undercover Boss on CBS this past Sunday?  That’s the show where executives from large companies go incognito in their own businesses.  They do it to learn firsthand how their employees really feel about working for them.  It’s always interesting, but this week’s episode revolved around BrightStar, a nationwide company that offers home care, child care and health staffing.

The CEO of BrightStar, Shelly Sun, disguised herself and shadowed several BrightStar Caregivers in different areas of the country.  One was a certified nursing assistant, Arlene, who had been assigned temporarily to a nursing home in California.  Arlene represented CNAs quite well, performing her job with warmth, sensitivity and professionalism.  She was honest with “Linda” (Shelly’s alter ego) about the pros and cons of the job, while always maintaining a positive attitude.

The hour-long show also showcased Caregivers in home health, assisted living and child care.  It was so good to see health care workers on television doing what they do in real life–rather than the fictionalized stereotypes we see so often.  You know what I mean…those shows where all the health care workers forget about their patients and spend their time “making whoopee” in the supply closet!

So, a big thank you to CBS for showcasing health care workers in such a good light.  All of us at In the Know send a heartfelt congratulations and shout out (Woo Hoo!) to Arlene for her dedicated work as a nursing assistant.  And, we are proud to be the CNA inservice provider chosen by BrightStar to serve all of their locations nationwide.

If you missed Undercover Boss with BrightStar, you can watch it on the CBS website.  You can also see more of Shelly’s thoughts about her experience here.

Things have definitely changed!  Home care has now taken the lead as the fastest growing sector of the health care industry.  Here are some statistics to prove it:

• According to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), the number of patients needing home care after hospitalization is up by a whopping 70 percent!

• The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 22 percent employment growth through 2018 for health care in general, but home health jobs are expected to increase by more than 46 percent.

Many of those job openings will be for home health aides.  As home care agencies struggle to fill positions, it will be more challenging than ever to develop and maintain a team of top-notch HHAs.  That’s where In the Know can help.  With more than 140 topics, we’ve got an inservice that addresses nearly any issue that might arise for your home health aides.  If you would like assistance in putting together either an orientation program for newly hired aides or a continuing education program, please give us a call.

Oh…and my colleagues at Duke were wrong.  That former home health nurse did just fine on the unit!  And, a couple of years later, I moved on from the hospital to work in home care myself.

Congratulations to home health for finally being recognized in the media as such an important part of our health care system.  And, a big thank you to all you home health nurses and aides out there for the vital work you do!

If you ask Daniel Goleman, the answer would be no.  In the 1990s, he researched and wrote the book, Emotional Intelligence.  His theory was that people could enhance their personal and professional success by mastering five key emotional competencies.  How do you think your nursing assistants rank when it comes to emotional intelligence?

1.      Awareness of Self and Others.

People with a high “emotional IQ,” also called “EQ,” should be able to identify their feelings accurately.  Imagine your CNAs are working with a difficult client.  Can they tell if they are feeling irritated, hurt or angry when the client is unfriendly?  Can they look past their own emotions and realize that their actions affect how other people feel?

2.      Managing Their Moods.

Emotional intelligence includes controlling impulses and handling anger constructively.  Let’s revisit that scenario with the combative client.  If your nurse aides feel angry when caring for a disruptive client, can they manage that anger without taking it out on the client—even in subtle, non-verbal ways?

3.      Motivating Themselves.

Having a high emotional IQ helps people set goals and work towards them with a positive attitude—even when faced with setbacks.  Do your nursing assistants have an inner drive that keeps them inspired and determined to do their best, no matter what the challenge?

4.      Empathy.

Can your nurse aides put themselves in someone else’s shoes—to see and feel the perspective of a client or a co-worker?  For example, when it comes to a grouchy client, can they see past the angry surface to understand the fear and loneliness that is fueling the client’s hostility?

5.      Managing relationships.

Working as a CNA is all about relationships—with clients, family members, co-workers and supervisors.  How skilled are your nursing assistants at resolving conflict?  Do they cooperate with their clinical team members?  Can you count on experienced aides to share what they know with new employees?

According to author Daniel Goleman, the mastery of these five competencies results in enhanced emotional intelligence. You might be thinking, “So what?” Well, studies show that emotionally intelligent employees communicate more effectively, manage change better and have higher levels of productivity—all great qualities for anyone who works in health care.

In an ideal world, it would be great to have a system in place at every workplace to assess for emotional intelligence during the hiring process.  However, it’s never too late to develop and improve the emotional intelligence of your current employees. You can find a number of resources—both in print and online—to assist you with EQ training.  Or, you can avoid reinventing the wheel by sharing some of the following In the Know inservices with your nurse aides.  Each one offers knowledge and skills that promote a high “EQ.”

Customer Service in Health Care (It’s free! Just fill out the registration form.)

The CNA/Nurse Relationship

Building Trust & Confidence with Clients

Working with a Team

Stress Management Skills

The Caring Qualities of a CNA

Conflict in the Workplace

Dealing with Difficult & Combative People

Being Assertive

Professionalism & Work Ethic

Happy Teaching!

Linda

There is good news.  Across the nation, healthcare workers are leading a revolution in waste management!  While some waste is unavoidable, much of it can be eliminated.  And, American healthcare workers are making changes.  Even “small” ideas can lead to reduced waste—and huge savings.

Here are examples of what is working:

• Switching from disposable to reusable sharps containers saves a medium-sized facility as much as $175,000 a year.
• Eliminating plastic trash bag liners in administrative areas saves $20,000 a year.
• Replacing paper towels with air dryers saves $45,000 a year.
• Switching from disposable to reusable food service items saves $500,000 and prevents 400,000 pounds of waste.
• A Health System in Portland, Oregon switched from disposable coffee cups to an all-plastic recyclable cup. Employees were also encouraged to bring their own mug to the cafeteria for a discount. This resulted in a savings of $24,000 and waste reduction of 28,333 pounds per year!

And then there’s paper.  Anyone who’s worked in health care knows that we kill a lot of trees.  In fact, researchers estimate that nearly half of those annual 6 million tons consist of paper and cardboard.  As more health care facilities move to computer-based charting, this figure may drop.   In the meantime, does your organization recycle paper and cardboard?  If not, how about asking the powers-that-be to get with the program?  Then, rally your nursing assistants and other co-workers to make recycling at work a habit.

Even if you or your nursing assistants are not into “being green,” there’s a more personal reason for providing cost-efficient care.  For the average health care workplace, supplies take up 20% of the budget.  Inefficient use of those supplies “steals” money from the budget that might go to employee raises and benefits!

So, remind your nursing assistants to use supplies wisely and pay attention to waste.  Every time they throw away an unused item, they are costing the consumer money, adding garbage to our nation’s landfills and possibly denying themselves a raise!  And be sure to ask them for their ideas on minimizing waste–and doing no harm to the environment.