Viewing Staff Retention Through a Kaleidoscope -- Part I
TrainingPosted on Wed Sep 07, 2005 at 05:00:21 AM EST
NOTE: This story below was written by Kim Karels and generously provided to the Exchange for broader dissemination:
“Nearly 96,000 nurses and other health care professionals are needed to fill vacant positions at nursing homes across the nation,” according to Act Now for Your Tomorrow, Final Report of National Commission on Nursing Workforce for Long Term Care.
Linda Bump*, Change Leader at Action Pact, addressed this shortage at the August 10th Focus 2005 conference: Collaborating for Quality -- Wisconsin Working Together.
“The Journey Back to Home-Creating a Culture of High Retention” was the title of Linda’s final presentation, her third session of the conference. Linda challenged attendees to see high retention through the kaleidoscope thinking method. Kaleidoscope thinking was created by Dr. Rosabeth Moss Kanter, a Harvard Business School professor who specializes in business strategy, innovation, and the management of strategic and organizational change.
While Beth believes that culture change can revolutionize long-term care, she emphasized that it will take the staff years to feel comfortable with the new methods. Beth still finds herself clinging to the old ways. For example, night staff often starts waking residents at 4 am or earlier so that all residents can be in the dining room for breakfast by 7 am. This is a responsibility of the night nurses and if the job is not done, day nurses are angered. For residents though this means that they are made to wait for their breakfast for up to three hours. However, what if the staff tried the kaleidoscope method? Linda suggests that as a step toward culture change, why not allow the residents to sleep in if they want and adjust dining times to allow it, offering early continental breakfast for early risers and a later full breakfast.
The often bureaucratic structure of long-term care staff and management is another area that could be looked at through the kaleidoscope. Instead of getting orders from the top down, high involvement from the staff creates high retention. Staff members that can find meaning and purpose in their jobs are more committed to them.
There are three specific ways of fostering high involvement:
More on the 3 R's tomorrow....
“Nearly 96,000 nurses and other health care professionals are needed to fill vacant positions at nursing homes across the nation,” according to Act Now for Your Tomorrow, Final Report of National Commission on Nursing Workforce for Long Term Care.
Linda Bump*, Change Leader at Action Pact, addressed this shortage at the August 10th Focus 2005 conference: Collaborating for Quality -- Wisconsin Working Together.
“The Journey Back to Home-Creating a Culture of High Retention” was the title of Linda’s final presentation, her third session of the conference. Linda challenged attendees to see high retention through the kaleidoscope thinking method. Kaleidoscope thinking was created by Dr. Rosabeth Moss Kanter, a Harvard Business School professor who specializes in business strategy, innovation, and the management of strategic and organizational change.
The way a kaleidoscope works is: a set of fragments forms a pattern, but the pattern isn't fixed. You can shake it, twist it look at it from a new angle, that's how our minds work. It's a style of thinking that says you can challenge the pattern. You can take the same elements of your organization or the same technologies that lots of other people are using and you can combine them in creative new ways that lead to new innovations. (taken from this interview)
There are many ways that kaleidoscope thinking can be applied to long-term care and culture change. During Linda’s session, she asked Beth Hadley, an attendee that she had met previously, to speak about her feelings regarding retention and to provide an example of the kaleidoscope method. Beth has been a CNA for 17 years and now also acts as a consultant. She has worked in both institutional and culture change model facilities. She said it’s not only the residents that become institutionalized but also the staff.While Beth believes that culture change can revolutionize long-term care, she emphasized that it will take the staff years to feel comfortable with the new methods. Beth still finds herself clinging to the old ways. For example, night staff often starts waking residents at 4 am or earlier so that all residents can be in the dining room for breakfast by 7 am. This is a responsibility of the night nurses and if the job is not done, day nurses are angered. For residents though this means that they are made to wait for their breakfast for up to three hours. However, what if the staff tried the kaleidoscope method? Linda suggests that as a step toward culture change, why not allow the residents to sleep in if they want and adjust dining times to allow it, offering early continental breakfast for early risers and a later full breakfast.
The often bureaucratic structure of long-term care staff and management is another area that could be looked at through the kaleidoscope. Instead of getting orders from the top down, high involvement from the staff creates high retention. Staff members that can find meaning and purpose in their jobs are more committed to them.
There are three specific ways of fostering high involvement:
1) Renewal of the Spirit
2) Reframing the organization
3) Renovate into a home
To learn more about the three R’s, check out Culture Change Now and click on the featured stories.2) Reframing the organization
3) Renovate into a home
More on the 3 R's tomorrow....
*Linda Bump is a consultant and trainer with Action Pact. As an Administrator, she guided Bigfork Valley Communities in their culture change journey. More can be read about that journey by reading Better Than We Ever Dreamed (pages 18 – 25 of Culture Change Now, Vol. 1, the
premier magazine on culture change). She also was the Operations Director for
Meadowlark Hills in Manhattan, KS as they moved into their households.
Linda is a dietician and also consults with organizations in the re-design of their dining processes, creating possibilities for residents to eat what they want when they want it. She assists organizations in kitchen redesign, moving dining closer to the elder, and cross training for households.
Linda is a dietician and also consults with organizations in the re-design of their dining processes, creating possibilities for residents to eat what they want when they want it. She assists organizations in kitchen redesign, moving dining closer to the elder, and cross training for households.
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