All nurses can tell their stories-stories of connecting with a patient and through this connection facilitating healing. Our capacity to care for one another, to collaborate, to nurture, and to connect bring purpose and meaning to our lives. It sparks our spiritual self and leaves us feeling satisfied and fulfilled, more ready to take on the stressors of our fast-paced lives. It brings meaning to the workplace and renews our passion for nursing. Yet, too often, connection is replaced with task.
Tucker's 2001 study of the pace of nursing activity showed that in an 8-hour shift, nurses performed on average 160 tasks taking approximately 2.48 minutes per task. Doing the math, nurses are working at an accelerated pace, and 7 hours and 46 minutes of shift time are already consumed. Clearly, if the nurse is doing the task without making the human connection, there is no time left in the shift to get back to patients and make that difference. If we have failed to humanize the experience, then we have failed to help patients get through a difficult and stressful part of their lives. Then we have failed our patients.
Our humanism must extend beyond one-on-one patient interaction. If we are to provide excellent care, then we need excellent teams and excellent teams mean that nurses must serve as coaches and mentors. Connectedness and caring relationships are the foundation for helping others grow and learn. Consider the last orientee, student nurse, or newly recruited international nurse on your unit. When interacting with these individuals, did you remember your own experiences when people did not reach out to you, which left you feeling insecure, angry, and inadequate? Have you connected with these people so they don't have that same negative experience?
My daughter, having completed fundamentals in nursing and working as a nurse intern this summer at a medical center in New York City, is a "baby nurse." She views nursing through innocent untainted lenses and is eager to learn and participate, despite being in new situations that leave her feeling vulnerable and unsure. Through these lenses she tells me about phenomenal nurses who have made a difference and have provided her the rays of sun needed for growth. The actions that make a difference are acknowledgment, kindness, and teaching. Her description of the "great nurse": "She tells me what she is doing and why and then later quizzes me to make sure I remember and understand. She lets me do things but is there to guide me. She makes it fun." If we cannot bring this support to students and new colleagues, they will still learn but they will learn the lessons of inaccessibility, indifference, intimidation, and inertia. If these are the lessons, then we have failed our colleagues and the students who will be our future in nursing.
Your willingness to mentor, guide, and support students and new colleagues helps them through a difficult and stressful part of their lives. It makes them more knowledgeable and more committed to the team as well as to the profession. Yet how does one maintain their spirit so they can nurture patients, students, and colleagues?
My sustainable energy and spirit, which I devote to nursing, is derived from my professional connections, in my case, the "NAON" connection. Actively participating in one's professional organization brings an infusion of knowledge that prevents complacency and obsolescence. Actively participating in one's professional organization exposes you to the science of nursing and medicine and to best practices and best organizations and allows you to examine your own practice and practice setting, all the while inspiring you to move toward "the best." And most importantly, actively participating in one's professional organization builds networks and collegiality, which can be tapped in time of need.
My NAON connection began 25 years ago, when I attended the first annual NAON Congress in Dallas. I was in awe. The professionalism, the science, and the people were all incredible. Over the years, I have remained actively involved and have formed a network of colleagues throughout the country. Sometimes I call on these people to ask an orthopaedic question or to find out how things are done in a particular agency. Sometimes I call because they have become friends and connecting with them infuses my spirit especially when I am going through a difficult and stressful part of life. Whether my need is professional or personal these connections nurture me and allow me to nurture others.
Today I write this editorial for my NAON friend and colleague, Mary Rodts, the Orthopaedic Nursing editor who is recovering from a recent hospitalization experience. Her "NAON Connection," a connection of people throughout this country, has rallied to demonstrate that connectedness crosses all boundaries of space and time. By connecting and sharing our love, our prayers, our gifts, and our talents, we not only help her heal but also personally become enlightened and our spirits rekindled.
I challenge all of you to take time out for a humanity check. How are you connected? Our value as nurses is affirmed when we connect with patients and heal. Our value as a nurse is affirmed when we are embedded in healthy, caring social network-our team and our profession. Take the time today-"reach out and touch someone." It will make a difference.