Finding your voice as a nurse is challenging for some of us. And sometimes, whenever we try to speak up, something gets in our way. Sometimes, we listen more to others than ourselves. We fail to listen to our voice and we forget that we even have one. We are caught up with so much noise and what people tell us to do.
But it is time we start listening to our own. We must find our own voice and speak up about what we want. How can we do that? Is there a process? What happens when we find our voice?
In this episode, we would like to introduce you to Andrea Dalzell, also known as @theseatednurse. She studied biology and neuroscience while earning her bachelor’s degree in nursing. Andrea was diagnosed with transverse myelitis at the age of 5 and began using a wheelchair full-time at the age of 12. She is an advocate and inspiration to many nurses around the world.
QUESTIONS FOR GUESTS
The questions below are some we’d like to tackle. We often go off-topic, so we don’t expect to hit them all. If you have any ideas, please let us know. Looking forward to our conversation!
These are the questions you had in Calendly. We’ll go off your questions and wherever else our conversation goes.
Can you give us a quick bio about yourself?
What was one of your biggest struggles in becoming a nurse?
How difficult was it to be a nurse or land your first position in your situation?
How did you find your voice through your disability?
“Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Access”
How are you advocating for creating more diverse and inclusive nursing environments?
Disability is the fastest and largest growing minority in the world. Without disability inclusion, we could be limiting opportunities for our future selves.
What is some advice you have for women who roll?
Nursing can seem intimidating or unattainable to someone who uses a wheelchair because of the physical demands, but that doesn’t mean they are out of reach.
The misconception comes with the fact that a disability means you’re incapable. Not true.
What are the future goals that you’re pursuing? It can be nursing or broad.
ENDING QUESTIONS
Before we end the show, we have one last question we like to ask all our guests. If you had the opportunity to have a Cup of coffee with anybody one last time, who would it be & why?
Find your voice by clicking on the full episode here 👇
TIME STAMPS:
00:00 Introduction 02:01 Going through life with a disability 05:53 Life, liberty, and the pursuit of access 07:10 Bias in Healthcare 12:09 Advice for overcoming fear and adversity 17:17 How to solve roadblocks in nursing 25:47 Overcoming the feelings of judgment 30:52 Other success stories 32:26 Finding acceptance and what is normal 39:07 Creating change for people with disabilities 41:09 How other countries accommodate disabilities 42:24 Managing time while in NP school, building a nonprofit, and starting a new career 46:55 Coffee with grandma one last time and role models 49:33 Wrapping up the episode
What is a Rapid Response Nurse With Sarah Lorenzini
When it comes to emergency response, a rapid response nurse must face it with complete confidence. However, not all nurses are as assertive and confident in emergency situations. It usually happens to new nurses or nurses who are just starting their careers and are not entirely used to emergencies.
Some nurses can handle the stress, while some may panic or avoid these situations. How can nurses respond to crises with ease and confidence? Can this be learned? How can we empower nurses to handle emergencies?
In this episode, we introduce you to our guest, Sarah Lorenzini. Sarah is a Rapid Response Nurse, educator, and podcast host who teaches nurses how to respond to emergencies. She is passionate about empowering nurses with confidence and competence to advocate for their patients.
QUESTIONS FOR GUESTS
The questions below are some we’d like to tackle. We go off-topic, so we don’t expect to hit them all. If you have any ideas, please let us know. Looking forward to our conversation!
Sarah, can you give a little background about yourself?
What is your nursing experience?
How did you get into Rapid Response?
What does a rapid response nurse do?
2. Your day-to-day process for responding to emergencies.
How important are team dynamics during an emergency and nonemergencies?
3. Over the years of traveling, we’ve noticed that units with close nurses perform better as a team during admissions, troubleshooting, and emergencies.
4. What is something you believe every nurse should know when it comes to emergencies?
Are some universal steps to use during an emergency or in preparation? Ex; ABCs, looking at detailed notes at the beginning of the shift.
5. Where do you think the biggest flaws are regarding rapid responses and codes?
What do you think needs to change or focus on? For example, quicker identification of a deteriorating patient, access to supplies, lack of education on the first steps of action, poor communication…
6. The smartest nurse can struggle in an emergency; how does the body react to a stressful situation, and how can we harness our SNS to help us?
7. Intuition is something that builds over time, but it’s just like confidence. A lot of time, we doubt ourselves. How can nurses use that intuition?
The one we always go it is talking about what you think, almost like getting a second opinion from the nurse. Something simple as saying, “I’ve had this patient for the last 3 nights, and his belly looks bigger. Can you take a look and see if it looks distended and feels hard? Do you think he might have an obstruction?
8. Rapid Response and Rescue course?
What made you make it?
What is it about?
ENDING QUESTIONS
Before we end the show, we have one last question we like to ask all our guests.
If you had the opportunity to have a Cup of coffee with anybody one last time, who would it be & why?
Do you want to be the best Rapid Response Nurse? Learn all about it in this full episode; click here 👇
TIME STAMPS:
00:00 Introduction 01:47 About the Guest 04:55 Qualities of a Rapid Response Nurse 07:34 ER vs. ICU 10:34 What does a Rapid Response Nurse shift look like? 14:56 What nurses should do and know when having a patient 20:50 The dynamics of taking care of the patient 23:12 What does a Rapid Response Team compose of? 26:54 What nurses should know before calling the rapid team 31:42 How to overcome stress and panic in an emergency 41:20 How to be confident and How to help build confidence in others 48:40 Magnet-status hospitals 50:07 Course for Rapid Response 54:16 Wrapping up the episode
Working as a nurse means dealing with different kinds of patients, even the rude ones. You must know how to handle difficult patients to become an extraordinary nurse.
Why are some patients rude?
Several factors make a patient hard to handle. It could be due to the stress of the illness or the tensions they feel from being inside a hospital. Sometimes, patients can be distressed, angry, scared, demanding, or have unrealistic treatment expectations for their needs. However, some of these behaviors may also be due to their past experiences in terms of medical treatment.
How to Deal with Difficult Patients
As a nurse, you cannot avoid patients that can test your nerves. However, you can also find ways to deal with them. Here’s how:
Tip 1. Don’t fight fire with fire.
One of the first things you must understand is that patients are sick and need your help, not the other way around. As a healthcare professional, you must try not to respond in anger or reactive behavior; keep your professional face on. A patient’s offense may not originate from when they were at the hospital but perhaps triggered by something that might have happened in their life. Try to be as patient and understanding as you can. Showing respect is still the right thing to do.
Tip 2. Listen to them.
Sometimes, an angry patient will tell their story once they have calmed down. Showing concern for a patient is one of the best ways to calm someone who is being difficult. When they do, give them undivided attention and listen to what they are talking about. Be sure to collect your thoughts before speaking to them too. Address them by their first name, acknowledge their concern, talk slowly and maintain eye contact when talking to them. Avoid mirroring their words; this could trigger them and may even turn defensive again.
Tip 3. Take note of your body language.
Sometimes, actions speak louder than words. That said, be mindful of your body language when dealing with a difficult patient. When a patient is angry, they will also find a way to push your buttons. In return, you become mad yourself. It will be easier to deal with a difficult patient if you do your best to remember not to take it personally. Being mindful about how you react is crucial. It will also help you choose the right words to say, use the tone of your voice, body language, and overall response.
Tip 4. Acknowledge the situation at hand.
Learn to acknowledge the situation. Most importantly, recognize how your patient feels. You can start by saying, “I understand how you feel” or “I feel like we have a misunderstanding.” As you do, keep your feelings aside and stay calm. Avoid using negative words that could escalate the situation.
Tip 5. Setting the boundaries.
Patients go to the hospital because they need attention, no doubt about that. However, if you keep giving in to their demands, how can you give attention to your other patients? Be clear with your boundaries. Let them know that their abuse is unacceptable. Make sure to set a time limit, say 15 minutes, then tell them you will see them in the next 30. As you continue to practice this with them, they will soon realize that you have a busy schedule and empathize with your situation.
Tip 6. Provide a Patient’s Satisfaction Survey.
This survey will allow your patients to share any of their concerns. Tell them that you value their feedback seriously. It also prevents them from leaving bad reviews online.
Tip 7. Stay proactive.
There is no use ignoring the problem. Avoiding a problematic patient won’t work either. So stay proactive, acknowledge your patient’s situation, identify the source of their anger, and be sure to implement steps to de-escalate the problem. The more you understand the case, the better it is for you to handle difficult patients.
Your Takeaway
There will always be unruly patients wherever you go. They will come to you with various ailments, mood disorders, fears, and other complications. You must also understand that they come from diverse backgrounds and live different lifestyles that you may disagree with. But it is part of the job, after all. As a nurse, stay professional; you were trained in this field, so use your nursing knowledge and abilities to provide them with the quality care they deserve.
Better nursing communication is essential in patient care, but it is also as important when communicating with colleagues and other healthcare professionals. What makes an effective way of communication? And what can you improve to be better at communicating? Here are five skills that you must learn.
Better Nursing Communication is a Must
Communication with friends, family, and coworkers is crucial for success. It gets your message across to others and allows you to understand what others need and want. Without proper communication, personal progression is impossible. It’s just as necessary for the speaker to get the message across as it is for the listener to understand.
1. Non-Verbal Communication
Communication begins with nonverbal cues. How often have you looked at someone and known they were open to a conversation, or even that time someone seemed that they didn’t want to be bothered. The nonverbal cues are the first things we notice.
Nonverbal communication is used throughout a conversation; think about:
Eye contact
Tone
Posture
Body language
Facial expression
2. Active Listening
Listen to understand, not just to respond. Really think about that because often, when someone is talking, we are already thinking of a way to respond. This leads to missing the whole picture or the other person not feeling understood.
It’s good to repeat a portion of what the person is saying to ensure that the intent is clear and that there are no misunderstandings.
Not everyone is coming to you for a solution sometimes, people just want to be heard and understood, not told what to do in response.
3. Inspire Trust
Keep your word. Don’t make promises you can’t keep, no matter how small. People tend to remember you for your best actions and for how you didn’t follow through with what you said.
Be honest; don’t say you can if you can’t do something.
An excellent way to build honest trust is to be open with your flaws. Share your mistakes and show your vulnerability. We are all human.
This is important when speaking with management. You might not see them every day, but it is essential not to sugarcoat things and really talk about how you feel about the unit environment.
4. Cultural awareness makes better nursing communication
People come from all walks of life, even your coworkers and managers. Don’t judge them on what they do. Don’t be ignorant, be open. Instead of judging, ask to learn about the things you don’t understand.
5. Verbal Communication
Verbal communication is the most important. It’s the primary way we get our message across.
Know what you are going to say and why. Is it going to be a serious conversation with a manager, or are you just catching up with a friend?
The most important thing to remember is to just talk to people. Talk to your coworkers and make them more than just a body to help you with turns. Share with them things about you and your stories, and ask them questions.
Do you want to learn how to communicate better as a nurse? Click on the full episode here 👇
TIME STAMPS:
00:00 Intro 01:12 Episode Introduction 02:43 I. Non-Verbal Communication 07:13 II. Active Listening 12:37 III. Inspire Trust 16:51 IV. Cultural Awareness 27:03 V. Verbal Communication 33:49 Wrapping up the episode
Nurses are the backbone of healthcare, and we take pride in that. However, there are times when nurses don’t feel like they are as important in our community. A bad work environment can also add up to the stress that many nurses feel. In some cases, many nurses do not feel like their efforts are given enough recognition, so they don’t perform well, or worse, they don’t provide quality patient care any longer.
While many nurses take their profession seriously, some are not sure anymore. What can we do to help our fellow nurses? Is there a way to inspire and encourage them to do better? What needs to improve in a nurse’s work environment to help them feel empowered?
In this episode, we would like to introduce you to Alice Benjamin, better known as Nurse Alice, America’s favorite nurse. She is a cardiac clinical nurse specialist and family nurse practitioner with over 23 years of healthcare experience. Alice is Nurse.org’s Chief Nursing Officer and Correspondent and hosts the popular ‘Ask Nurse Alice’ podcast.
QUESTIONS FOR GUESTS:
The questions below are some we’d like to tackle. We go off-topic all the time so we don’t expect to hit them all. If you have any ideas please let us know. Looking forward to our conversation!
Being in over 20 years in healthcare, what are some changes you would like to see in healthcare?
How do you think the pandemic has affected nurses?
How should new nurses empower themselves going into this profession in 2022?
What do you think about the RaDonda Vaught case?
She was sentenced on Friday to three years of probation in a Nashville criminal court. After the probationary period, she could ultimately have her conviction dismissed.
Found guilty in March of two charges, criminally negligent homicide and abuse of an impaired adult, after a medication error contributed to the death of 75-year-old Charlene Murphey in December 2017.
What are some of the biggest challenges you have taken on recently?
What is something nursing has thought you that you can apply in life?
ENDING QUESTIONS
Before we end the show we have one last question we like to ask all our guests. If you had the opportunity to have a Cup of coffee with anybody one last time, who would it be & why?
Learn how to become an empowered nurse by watching our full episode. Click here for more 👇
TIME STAMPS:
00:00 Intro 01:35 About Alice 02:30 What are some changes you would like to see in healthcare? 06:26 How can we improve the healthcare system? 09:46 Reasons for some patients’ noncompliance 15:24 One-size-fits-all patient treatment does not always work. 17:57 How should new nurses empower themselves? 20:26 How to be a better nurse 24:13 What are the challenges of being a nurse 29:52 Thoughts about the RaDonda Vaught case? 43:31 The last one cup of coffee with?
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