Building a Brighter Future was not only the theme for our 2022 Risk Management Seminar held recently, but it also resonated with our team as we work to support our partners coming out of the pandemic and working towards a better tomorrow.
The Seminar was held virtually again this year, not because we didn’t want to see everyone in person (because we did!), but so we could respect the current staffing challenges and give as many as possible the opportunity to participate.
The seminar started with a discussion on workplace safety and then transitioned to innovative ways to improve culture and morale, including how to onboard and train in the midst of the many staffing challenges experienced by so many. We ended the morning with time to focus on ourselves and learn valuable tools to improve self-care as individuals and providers. All in all, it was time well spent and allowed everyone the opportunity to feel like they could ‘build a brighter future’ using the tools and resources shared.
Here are some of the impactful themes and quotes from the day.
Workplace Safety – Recognizing that 63% of healthcare workers surveyed admit they don’t always feel safe at work and that healthcare workers are five times more likely to experience workplace violence, this discussion centered around building effective organizational and personal practices to recognize and address safety. We learned that “no awareness means no chance.” Best practices include building a culture of safety that supports reporting events and suspected unsafe conditions, promoting effective communication, and building effective tools for situational awareness that helps providers be “part of the solution, instead of part of the problem.”
Through the discussion on Innovations for improving culture in the current healthcare environment, we learned from two of our hospital leaders how they are building an environment to yield future success. Common themes included “focusing on building relationships and a culture that supports our teams” as well as “getting back to the basics instead of just putting out fires.” They spoke of the importance of investing on the front end. It’s important to connect dots between the expected behavior and patient safety. Effective leadership rounding was also a point raised to address staffing and training gaps.
We finished the seminar by moving from organizational best practices to practicing self-care by learning to invest in ourselves. Robin Angelo, an integrative health coach reminded us that not only do we need to focus on our staff because we know they’re our most valuable asset, but we need to take time to do that as individual leaders and providers because doing so makes us better able to handle our roles in the tough healthcare world in which we work. She provided participants with clear, distinct tools they could use over the next few weeks to begin to understand themselves better and invest in actions for a better tomorrow. I loved her exercise for ‘Finding your North Star’ where she reminded us that “we swim in an ocean of those who come before us, but that we must create our own personal legacy.”
Summarizing Robin’s final point – “Not only survive but thrive, not expect perfection but make progress, and It’s not a destiny but a journey,” were great parting words from the seminar. I know I feel recharged! We hope you, too, feel refreshed to keep pushing forward, while knowing that the Inspirien team is here to provide support and be your best cheerleader as you work daily to provide safe, effective care for the patients and the communities you serve.
This seminar is offered to Inspirien insureds and the Healthcare Workers’ Compensation Fund members. For more information on how to be invited to our next seminar, email a member of our team at riskmanagement@inspirien.net.