Meeting c the Chief

Hello cohorts...

Today I had the opportunity to sit down and talk WITH my chief nursing officer at her invitation. She had set up meetings to hear staff ideas and concerns. The one thing that I would really like to comment on is how this course and our discussions help prepare me for that conversation, in that it was positive and very professional. I am still riding high and all inspired from our conversations about being a professional and getting involved in politics at all levels. I am reminded of the nurse who courageously invoked safe harbor, and was HEARD. I took a dose of my own advice. And I came prepared considering all that we had discussed about what we could and should do to make a difference where we could in our profession, especially, when had the ear of a power player. I thought about the references that were cited throughout our conversations, about the importance of getting involved, not being apathetic, and in general, just being professional. I took all of that today with me to this meeting. I went prepared with my ideas and suggestions considering our most recent discussions 'efficiency vs excellence' and 'changing technologies.' Having had the opportunity to shawdow my preceptor and be apart of committee meetings, I was prepared to offer solutions and with valid rationale or at least, what I thought was valid. I came with a dream list of what I thought would make our unit more efficient. Then I demanded one single thing, a COW(computer on wheels) that worked the entire shift. I explained how a working COW was essential and the greatest stressor and source of inefficiency which translated to a certain level of customer dissatisfaction on our unit. And you know that really matters to administration.

I remembered one of the statements I made earlier in one of our discussions about administration being more concern about the bottom line than they were about nurses, trying to squeeze every drop out of us. I don't know exactly what is going to come down the hill, but I really felt like my welfare and my ability to perform mattered to administration. I felt like I had a 'voice' and was heard.

Thanks you guys because I took yawl with me. And I am really glad I had an opportunity to think intellectually about those kinda issues that affect our day to day professional lives. Because of those topics I went in prepared to affect change and not just to moan and groan helplessly.