Conversations to inspire and promote a more civil workplace

The work environment assessment showed by place of employment score of 66, mildly healthy. I would agree with this. I want to point out, the low scores on the questions were referring to management only.  Based on these results, the workplace is not entirely civil. The floor staff works excellent together, but we avoid the director at all costs, as far as bringing things up or going to seek them out. It is felt firmly among floor staff that all the director of our unit makes us feel like we are not doing enough, and she cannot stand to be on the unit. This is mainly because we “just aren’t doing things right.”  Often, she has come down and just cleaned up things, asking what we have been doing and why we cannot keep up. We feel belittled and not 100% when she is around. “The toxic environment leads to a decrease in the nurse’s job satisfaction resulting in increased absenteeism and unnecessary turnover. (Schoville & Aebersold, 2020, p. 2).

There have been incivility incidents in the workplace, and people were unsure of what to do at that moment, making it uncomfortable for all. It seems many of the times those incidents get swept under the rug. I can think of the director with a raised voice at one of the providers in the nurse’s station in front of all floor staff.  This was highly inappropriate, and the provider was very hurt. Not being handeled properly, it made everyone uncomfortable.  The provider was going to write an incident report, but in the end, did not. Like many other times, when the director makes people cry, it is ignored because there is no one else to tell.  If we do seek out a higher up, we feel there will be retaliation anyway.

The DESC model is an excellent approach to structuring a civil conversation. DESC stands to Describe your specific situation, express your concerns, state other alternatives and consequence statement. “Using DESC model in conjunction with cognitive rehearsal is an effective way to address specific incivility incidents.” (Clark, 2018, p. 21).

One way to keep the workplace civil is to have high levels of emotional intelligence. In doing this, staff will be happier and conflict management will be easier.  Keeping personal thoughts and feeling to the side will help the leader focus on the actual problem and the solving. “First, as a leader, it is important to bracket your own emotional responses.” (Marshall & Broome, 2018, p. 286).

“Interactions among employees can affect their ability to do their jobs, their loyalty to the organization, and most important, the delivery of safe, high-quality patient care.” (Clark, 2018, p. 18).

References

Clark, C. M. (2018). Combining cognitive rehearsal, simulation, and evidence-based

scripting to address incivility. Nurse Educator. doi:10.1097/NNE.0000000000000563

Marshall, E., & Broome, M. (2017). Transformational leadership in nursing: From expert

clinician to influential leader (2nd ed). New York, NY: Springer.

Schoville, R., & Aebersold, M. (2020). How Workplace Bullying and Incivility Impacts Patient

Safety: A Qualitative Simulation Study Using BSN Students. Clinical Simulation in Nursing,

45, 16–23. https://doi-org.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/10.1016/j.ecns.2020.01.003

Chr Zei Response 2

Workplace civility is essential in providing high-quality care for patients and promoting effective communication between staff. The American Nurses Association (ANA) acknowledges the importance of nurses encouraging and participating in being civil by abiding by ethics and fostering respect. When a workplace lacks civility, it can harm patient care as there is increased employee turnover and a lack of effective communication between staff (Clark, 2015). Civility allows employees to communicate effectively, not always to agree, but to allow for a healthy discussion. Many employees who experience incivility don’t speak up and lose motivation to provide high-quality care. Incivility costs a workplace financially due to a lack of retaining employees and decreased productivity (NIH Record, 2019).

Often, it is the workplace leader’s job to workplace civility and a teamwork mentality. An effective leader must have a clear vision for the team to follow, and when issues develop, the leader is ready to evaluate and resolve the problem. A good team leader ensures that employees have appropriate resources to conduct their jobs and motivate them to collaborate (Marshall & Broome, 2017). A workplace inventory is a tool used to assess how healthy a work environment is. The place that I am employed with scored 79, which indicates mildly healthy. In my opinion, my workplace is civil, for the most part, with some situations and employees that often require redirecting and effective communication. For example, two employees both expressed that they thought they were trying to interfere with patient assignments. These individuals saw a situation in their minds that one another was trying to sabotage each other when I, as the supervisor, made clinical decisions regarding patient assignments with the physician on call. When we all sat down together to discuss this, these two individuals realized that they were feeling overwhelmed at the time and may have misinterpreted the actions of each other. We resolved the situation by creating a safe and neutral space for both parties to express their concerns and mediate the discussion to end with a civil conversation and a healthy conclusion.

Not every situation in the workplace ends with a positive conclusion. It is essential to use cognitive rehearsing to practice what one wants to convey to another staff member. It is often challenging to discuss situations in the workplace, where emotions are heightened. As a leader, it is imperative to guide these discussions when necessary and not turn a blind eye. Ultimately

References

Clark, C. M. (2015). Conversations to inspire and promote a more civil workplace. American

Nurse Today, 10(11), 18–23. Retrieved October 08, 2020, from https://www.americannursetoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/ant11-CE-Civility-1023.pdf

Marshall, E. S., & Broome, M. E. (2017). Transformational Leadership in Nursing (2nd

ed.). New York: Springer Publishing.

NIH Record. (2019, March 26). Workplace Civility Increases Productivity. Retrieved October

08, 2020, from https://nihrecord.nih.gov/2018/08/10/workplace-civility-increases-productivity.