Monday, October 12, 2009

Go Big or Go Home!

We had another townhall meeting this week. I decided to go yesterday since I am working Tues, Wed & Thurs this week & didn't want to go after working 12 hours. It's hard enough adjusting to losing an hour of sleep (due to the drive), but add in a loss of another hour = Jen not a happy camper. So I went yesterday & loved it. I'm not just pretending either.

As with any work meetings...I dread going. I'm used to them being boring and the administration not really caring what we felt/thought & usually we'd be told of what we're not doing right & what we need to improve on. Basically they were doom & gloom. This hospital is different. It is more like a pep rally. It is simply amazing. Seriously. Amazing. A work meeting. Who would have ever thought they could be fun?

I was looking forward to this meeting because we just went through the employee satisfaction survey & although I was unable to give my input (you have to be there for at least 3 months to take the survey), I was interested in seeing the results. This meeting was a Hollywood theme...an Academy Award theme...red carpet, pictures, food, administration dressed up in tux & long gowns, paparazzi. It was pretty impressive! Not only were they taking pics, they printed them during the meeting & were handing them to us after the meeting was over. Who knew administration could be this quick & efficient?

The results were amazing too....we are a hospital within a large chain of hospitals. I think one of the largest chains in the United States. That being said...we rank #1 in employee satisfaction within our chain. Number one!!! On top of that, our hospital is in the 83rd percentile in the entire U.S. And my department ranks in the top 25% in the country. Say what?????

We have not had a patient fall in 58 days...and we don't even use bed alarms! This is a hospital with more than 350 beds. At my old hospital...we were lucky to go a week without a fall & the hospital is less than half the size. And we had bed alarms - not that they always worked.

Anyways, it feels really good to be working somewhere that I can be proud of. Somewhere that the departments can work together rather than against one another. Somewhere that the administration pays tribute to all that we do. It's the little things that mean so much....yeah, the candy, chocolate & cheesecake help....but just having our administrators recognizing & acknowledging our hardwork is the best. Especially after leaving a hospital that views nurses at the bottom of the barrel.

I am so glad I made the decision to change hospitals. Nursing is still a very tough, demanding & tiring job...and always will be. However, it's nice to be free of the chaos & drama from the higher ups. It's nice to be able to call pharmacy & not get the run around or have to wait hours for a medication. It's nice to get report from ER & things be in order. It's nice to call lab & not get excuses. It's nice to call doctors & not get an attitude or hung up on. It's nice to have a new unit that we all have pretty much blended right into. It's been a nice adjustment.

It's nice to work at a hospital you can be proud of.

No comments: