The day-to-day operations within a nursing team are complex. From providing excellent care to ensuring the safety of your team, you have a lot to juggle on any given day. Regardless of the healthcare facility you manage, the well-being of your team is first and foremost to you. You’ve probably taken great care to hire the best possible people, but even with top-notch talent, here are some ways you can improve collaboration within your nursing team:
· Always provide a safe space for communication. You can hold a monthly meeting, morning collaboration or an evening happy hour. It is a great idea to give your team a chance to truly vent their feelings and thoughts without repercussions, when done in a kind manner. You don’t want them to feel censored or defensive if they’re presented with a problem. From the most junior to the most senior person on your team, they should all feel their value.
· Communicate with everyone, effectively. Because you’re so busy, you might feel communicating via email or memos all the time is the most efficient. This can work at times, but it is important to have interaction with your team; maybe this means a quick call to check on them or a purposeful greeting when you’re both in the facility together. Ensure that each team member knows what’s going on and is expected of them.
· Delegate tasks and document this. Be very clear about what is expected and consider putting it on a list or a white board. This will keep your team organized. When your team knows what’s expected, they can work together effectively.
· Let your team speak for their strengths. A great exercise is to have your team write down their strengths, or each other’s, and what they like to do within their job description. Assign tasks that correlate to what they enjoy and what they are good at. This not only makes your team happier, it can provide better results.
· Set them up for success. When you have machines and software that doesn’t work, people with negative attitudes and poor management, you are not giving your team the best options for success. They may start to resent you, as well as others on the team. Give them what they need, and they are more likely to band together as a team and work harder to achieve their shift goals.
Team collaboration is more than working efficiently, it’s an overall attitude. Your team will perform better when their morale is strong.
If you are ready to add some strong talent to your team, contact the professional staff at WSi Healthcare. We are more than ready to find a great fit for your nursing team.