Vital role of nurses
- Sound relationship, cooperation and coordination among the nurses (Ulutasdemir, 2018).
- Improved communication efficacy
- Quality of communication in a hospital setup and its direct impact
- Preparation of an effective communication improvement plan
In any healthcare system, nurses play a vital role in delivering essential healthcare services to patients. However, for effective accomplishment they need to have sound relationship, cooperation and coordination among nurses as well as between nurses and patients. One way of achieving this is by improving communication efficacy within the system. Studies have shown that good communication between nurses in a healthcare facility helps in the provision of better healthcare to patients. Indeed, the quality of communication in a hospital setup has a direct impact on patient outcomes. Therefore, one of the priority areas for a nurse leader on a given floor should be to improve communication. This will be actualized by preparing an effective communication improvement plan that takes into consideration the resources available, employee engagement, change management principle and team dynamics.
Resources
- A variety of educational materials
- Tea and coffee
- The entire training cost
- Nurses covering for trainees will be compensated.
- Staff allowance of $10 will be extended to each nurse
- Educational plan
- Department interventions
To get the communication improvement plan implemented, a number of resources will be required. A variety of educational materials such as posters, modules, computers, and audiovisuals will be used to train staff on communication improvement. The trainees will also be required to have smartphones and writing materials. Tea and coffee will be provided alongside snacks at the end of each training session. The entire training exercise is estimated to cost $11,500. Nurses who will be covering various units as their colleagues participate in the training exercise will be compensated. An allowance of $10 will be extended to each nurse for every partner he or she will hold for per hour. The training targets 50 nurses working in the ground floor of the medical facility. With only ten nurses on session every week, the entire training exercise is expected to last for five weeks. For effective implementation of these interventions, the unit manager will include such departments as finance, health and safety, intensive care unit, public relations, medical records, infection control, pharmacy, purchasing and supplies, social work, sexual health, administration, and patient services. These departments have direct interactions with the operations of the floor for which the unit manager is responsible.
A basic educational plan for communication improvement training will follow a simple format of introduction, objectives, content and evaluation.
The Proposed Budget.
Employee Engagement
- Improvement of communication among nurses
- Engagement of employees
- Accessibility to all communication channels (Turner, 2020).
- Communication resources
- Feedback platforms
The ultimate objective of this training plan is to improve communication among nurses as well as between them and their patients. To keep employees engaged to it, it will be crucial to regularly remind them of this objective. This could be achieved through posters, emails or text messages. It will also be significant to allow accessibility to all communication channels within the facility (Turner, 2020). Employees will be provided with all the resources that they will need in order to communicate effectively. Besides, the staff will be given a platform to provide feedback on the various issues encountered that hinders them from communicating effectively.
Change Management Principles
- Structured approaches to avoid change resistances
- Kurt Lewin’s change mode of unfreezing
- Unfreezing-assist employees to understand communication system (Prasad, 2020)
- Changing-transitioning stage of implementation of new communication rules
- Refreeze- reinforce on intended target
Every change comes with challenges that can counter the gains intended if not done properly. The implementation plan will include designed and structured approaches to ensure that improvement of communication training is implemented smoothly and thoroughly in order to achieve the desired outcomes. This plan will be implemented using Kurt Lewin’s change mode of unfreezing, changing and refreezing. In the unfreezing stage, the unit manager will let the employees understand the gaps in the current communication system and how it is hindering service delivery (Prasad, 2020). Changing is the transitioning stage when the staff implement the new communication rules acquired from the training. To ensure that the new modes of communication are deeply entrenched within the organizational culture, it will be necessary to refreeze or reinforce them on their intended target.
Team Dynamics
- An open-door communication policy.
- Members are encouraged to communicate with precision.
- Team members are empowered to make decisions.
- Boost of confidence and a feeling of ownership.
- Communication efforts dramatically improved.
To improve communication in the ground floor, the implementation plan will insist on an open-door communication policy. This is where members of a given team or department are encouraged to communicate with precision with each other about latest news and clinical updates (Levi, 2015). The team members will also be empowered to make decisions regarding their work. This will boost their confidence and give them a feeling of ownership. As a result, their communication efforts will be dramatically improved.
References
Prasad, L. M. (2020). Principles and Practice of Management. Sultan Chand & Sons.
Turner, P. (2020). Employee engagement in contemporary organizations: Maintaining high productivity and sustained competitiveness. Springer Nature.
Ulutasdemir, N. (2018). Nursing. IntechOpen.