Smart Nursing: How to Create a Positive Work Environment that Empowers and Retains Nurses

224 Pages·2005·8.98 MB·english

by  June Fabre MBA RNC

Springer Series on Nursing Management
and Leadership
Joyce J. Fitzpatrick, PhD, RN, FAAN, Series Editor
Advisory Board: Pamela Cipriano, PhD, RN, FAAN; Harriet R. Feld-
man, PhD, RN, FAAN; Greer Glazer, RN, PhD, CNP, FAAN; Daniel
J. Pesut, PhD, APRN, BC, FAAN; Elaine La Monica Rigolosi, EdD,
JD, FAAN
2005 Smar t Nursing: How to Create a Positive Work
Environment that Empowers and Retains Nurses
June Fabre, MBA, RNC
2005 Managemen t and Leadership i n Nursing and Health Care:
An Experiential Approach, 2nd Edition
Elaine La Monica Rigolosi, EdD, JD, FAAN
2003 Th e Nursing Shortage: Strategies for Recruitment and
Retention hi Clinical Practice and Education
Harriet R. Feldman, PhD, RN, FAAN
2003 Managin g Your Practice:
A Guide for Advanced Practice Nurses
Joyce J. Fitzpatrick, PhD, RN, MBA, FAAN, Ann Glasgow, MSHCA,
MSN, FNP, and Jane Young, CRNP, MSN
About the Author
The author knows about nursing chal-
lenges because she has experienced
them. June Fabre has worked as a clin-
ical nurse, educator, and manager in
many specialties such as medical sur-
gical, psychiatry, home care, long-
term care, ambulatory care, managed
care, rehabilitation, and cardiology.
She decided to turn the challenges of
working as a nurse into an opportu-
nity—to start a business focused
on producing positive health care
change. Ms. Fabre believes that nurses can create positive change
by supplementing their comprehensive medical knowledge with
communication and leadership techniques.
Ms. Fabre is an author, speaker, and consultant on various topics
such as critical thinking, high-performance teams, and the art of
creating a staff-friendly culture. As a result, she has spoken to audi-
ences, large and small, all across the country. In addition, she has
published more than 30 articles in popular health care journals, Ms.
Fabre received her RN and BS in education from State University
College, Pittsburgh, NY; a BSN from Excelsior College, Albany, NY;
and an MBA from Plymouth State College, Plymouth, NH. For more
information, you can reach Ms. Fabre at www.junefabre.com.
JUNE FABRE , MBA , RN C
S M A RT
N U R S I NG
HOW T O CREAT E A POSITIV E
WORK ENVIRONMEN T THA T
EMPOWERS AN D RETAIN S NURSE S
SPRINGER PUBLISHIN G COMPAN Y
NURSING MANAGEMEN T & LEADERSHI P SERIES
Copyright © 2005 by June Fabre
All rights reserved
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of Springer Publishing
Company, Inc.
Springer Publishing Company, Inc.
11 West 42nd Street
New York, NY 10036
Acquisitions Editor: Ruth Chasek
Production Editor: J. Hurkin-Torres
Cover design by Joanne Honigman
Art by Andrew White
05 06 07 08 09 / 5 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Fabre, June.
Smart nursing : how to create a positive work environment that empowers
and retains nurses / by June Fabre.
p. ; cm. — (Springer series on nursing management and leadership)
ISBN 0-8261-2585-9
1. Nursing services—United States—Personnel management. 2. Nursing
services—United States—Administration. 3. Nurses—Supply and
demand—United States. 4. Nurses—United States—Social conditions.
5. Manpower planning—United States.
[DNLM: 1. Nursing—methods. 2. Nursing—organization & administration.
3. Medical Errors—prevention & control. 4. Nurse's Role. 5. Nurse-Patient
Relations. 6. Patient Satisfaction.] I. Title. II. Series.
RT89.3.F33 2005
610.73'068'3—dc22 2004031097
Printed in the United States of America by Sheridan Press.
The anecdotal cases in this book are composites of nursing experiences from
US and international nurses combined with hypothetical situations. The names
used in the cases have been disguised.
To my parents
Fritz Bendel and Olga Bendel, LPN (Retired),
who lived and loved the American Dream
This page intentionally left blank
Contents
Contributors ix
Acknowledgments xi
Part I: Why Use Smart Nursing?
Introduction 3
1. Relationships: The Importance of a Staff-Friendly 7
Culture
With contribution by Jeannette Ives Erickson
2. Research: Alarming Data Supports Nursing Concerns 19
Part II: The Six Building Blocks of Smart Nursin g
3. Respect: Learn to Value Nurses 31
4. Simplicity: Focus on the Basics 39
5. Flexibility: Be Adaptable 46
6. Integrity: The Foundation of Ethical Practice 59
7. Culture: The Art of Creating a Staff-Friendly 65
Organization
8. Communication: A Key Ingredient of Collaboration 76
Part III: Applications of Smart Nursing
9. Staffing: Recruiting and Retaining the Best Nurses 93
vii
viii Contents
10. Teamwork: Building High-Performance Teams 113
11. Safety: Preventing Medical Errors 123
12. Diversity: The Magic Is in the Staffing Mix 132
13. Leadership: Coaching and Mentoring Others 137
With contribution by Linda Pullins
14. Problem-Solving Strategies: Creating Opportunities 146
From Challenges
Part IV: Looking to the Future
15. Benefits to Groups Outside Nursing: How CEOs, 159
Physicians, Trustees, and Managed Care Professionals
Can Help
16. Becoming a Lifelong Learner: Accelerate Your 175
Professional Development
17. What Individual Nurses Can Do: How You Can Make 183
a Difference
18. Through the Process of Change Emerges the Decade 194
of the Nurse
Nancy M. Valentine
Epilogue 198
Recommended Reading 199
References 201
Index 203
Contributors
Jeannette Ives Erickson, RN, MS, is senior vice president for patient
care and chief nurse at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA.
Linda Pullins, RN, is vice president for patient care at Marion Gen-
eral Hospital in Marion, OH.
Nancy M. Valentine, RN, PhD, D.Sc. (Hon.), MSN, MPH, FAAN, FNAP,
is national nursing executive at CIGNA HealthCare, Medical Strategy
and Health Policy, in Hartford, CT.
ix