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Emergency nursing in perspective: Mentoring, sharing, supporting
President’s Message Emergency nursing in perspective: Mentoring, sharing, supporting Author: Benjamin E. Marett, RN, MSN, CEN, COHN-S, CNA, Rock Hill, SC
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s nurses, we frequently find ourselves facing dilemmas. We face difficult choices at work— complicated triage decisions, new medication or sedation protocols, even what to do first at any given moment in a shift. Arranging the rest of our lives can be difficult as well. Days off seem too short. Weekends off seem to move by too quickly. Co-workers seem grumpy on occasion. How can we best deal with all these daily dilemmas when the difficult tasks just seem to grow more numerous? Perhaps the answer is perspective. As Arnold Beisser said, “Tragedy and comedy are but two aspects of what is real, and whether we see the tragic or the humorous is a matter of perspective.”1 Thus, each person’s dilemmas are as they view them. Whereas one person may view a situation as a major dilemma, someone else may see it as absolutely inconsequential. As we return to the emergency care arena reenergized and recharged after the year 2000 ENA Annual Meeting, we need to consider both real and perceived dilemmas in our profession. First, we must be willing to “grow” our profession and use our talents to do so. The “sacred cow” of new graduates not working in the emergency department must be discarded. Many well-trained, mature, prepared new graduates are ready and waiting for entrance into the emergency department. Our first challenge is mentorship. As I travel across the United States, I hear many people talk about requiring a 6month to 1-year stint in medical/surgical nursing before entering into emergency nursing. Although not all new graduates represent a good fit with emergency care, and although some may, indeed, need to work on skills necessary for ED nursing, many are
Benjamin E. Marett, Clinical Nurse Specialist, Emergency Care Consultants of the Carolinas, Rock Hill, SC, is president of the Emergency Nurses Association and a member of the Catawba chapter; E-mail: [email protected]. J Emerg Nurs 2000;26:401-2. Copyright © 2000 by the Emergency Nurses Association. 0099-1767/2000 $12.00 +0 18/61/110579 doi:10.1067/men.2000.110579
perfectly ready to accept the challenge, and I thought someone should put that in writing! As seasoned veterans, our focus must be on sharing our knowledge, training our young nurses, and providing needed leadership. We must also be willing to encourage persons to enter nursing to begin with. As statistics indicate, the nursing population is aging. Thus we begin to feel the aches and pains of busy ED shifts, and it is increasingly important that we help young nurses acquire the necessary tools and watch them grow. The nursing shortage dilemma can be resolved only if we maintain the pool of available candidates.
The “sacred cow” of new graduates not working in the emergency department must be discarded. Second, we need to collaborate among ourselves. Frequently I hear nursing colleagues ask questions about patient care. Ideally, nurses will not only discuss the problems but share possible solutions. Looking for answers is more productive than focusing on problems. The mentoring concept fits with our colleagues as well. In addition to talking, how often do we help a fellow nurse or thank one for helping us? A thought would be to fit crutches for a co-worker’s patient, restock the linen in someone else’s area, or offer to administer charcoal when a colleague is extremely busy. Mentoring is more than just sharing knowledge. We can even help our “grumpy” colleagues. Why not a piece of peppermint candy atop their next chart to let them know someone cares? My point is simple. In addition to mentoring the young, we need to care for those around us. We need to voice our concerns, be empathetic, share our triumphs, and work
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JOURNAL OF EMERGENCY NURSING/Marett
collaboratively to provide the expected excellence in emergency care. A working condition dilemma can be resolved only if we work together to change what is real for us all.
Our focus must be on sharing our knowledge, training our young nurses, and providing needed leadership. We must also be willing to encourage persons to enter nursing to begin with. Finally, we must save energy for our golden years. Recently I spoke with an emergency nursing colleague who is still working at the age of 70 years. She said her secret was keeping her mind active, and then her body followed. The concept of caring for ourselves while caring for others definitely applies to our profession. Again, the mentoring concept applies to the graying population. Even though a host of resources are available to keep us looking good and feeling young, liposuction, facial peels, face lifts, hormonal replacement, personal training, health clubs, and hair coloring will not stop 76 million baby boomers from reaching middle age. Al-
though some persons describe emergency nursing as a “young person’s profession,” a mix of young and old is so much better. Young nurses have an abundance of energy and enthusiasm, and seasoned veterans have a wealth of knowledge and experience to share, a multitude of insights to give, and a desire to mentor our young colleagues. The dilemma of a lack of experienced caregivers can only be solved if we enjoy our chosen profession, continue to learn, and stay in it. Annual Meeting 2000 “fever” in Chicago was contagious. It spread to each of the lucky emergency nurses who attended. I know I definitely feel the effects. My energy level is high, and I feel like I am in a hyperdynamic state. I am ready for the many shifts until the next ENA gathering. Bring on the new graduates. I am ready to mentor. I am even willing to do 2 triage shifts in a row. Each time I work, I will look for opportunities to support my colleagues, perhaps by making up a stretcher, slipping a piece of candy in their pocket, and maybe even giving back that pen or pair of scissors that I borrowed. Last, I am going to relax a little and enjoy the many benefits of being an emergency nurse—mentoring, sharing, supporting, being positive, focusing on the good, and working to change the bad, because after all, it is just a matter of perspective. Reference 1. Beisser A. Available at: URL: www.bemorecreative.com/ cgi-bin/search16.cgi?keyword=Beisser&boolean= and&field=all&database=all.
The JOURNAL OF EMERGENCY NURSING welcomes the submission of unsolicited manuscripts and encourages calls to discuss potential articles. Karen Halm, Managing Editor: (800) 900-9659, x4044 Let us hear from you.
402 Volume 26, Number 5
A
s nurses, we frequently find ourselves facing dilemmas. We face difficult choices at work— complicated triage decisions, new medication or sedation protocols, even what to do first at any given moment in a shift. Arranging the rest of our lives can be difficult as well. Days off seem too short. Weekends off seem to move by too quickly. Co-workers seem grumpy on occasion. How can we best deal with all these daily dilemmas when the difficult tasks just seem to grow more numerous? Perhaps the answer is perspective. As Arnold Beisser said, “Tragedy and comedy are but two aspects of what is real, and whether we see the tragic or the humorous is a matter of perspective.”1 Thus, each person’s dilemmas are as they view them. Whereas one person may view a situation as a major dilemma, someone else may see it as absolutely inconsequential. As we return to the emergency care arena reenergized and recharged after the year 2000 ENA Annual Meeting, we need to consider both real and perceived dilemmas in our profession. First, we must be willing to “grow” our profession and use our talents to do so. The “sacred cow” of new graduates not working in the emergency department must be discarded. Many well-trained, mature, prepared new graduates are ready and waiting for entrance into the emergency department. Our first challenge is mentorship. As I travel across the United States, I hear many people talk about requiring a 6month to 1-year stint in medical/surgical nursing before entering into emergency nursing. Although not all new graduates represent a good fit with emergency care, and although some may, indeed, need to work on skills necessary for ED nursing, many are
Benjamin E. Marett, Clinical Nurse Specialist, Emergency Care Consultants of the Carolinas, Rock Hill, SC, is president of the Emergency Nurses Association and a member of the Catawba chapter; E-mail: [email protected]. J Emerg Nurs 2000;26:401-2. Copyright © 2000 by the Emergency Nurses Association. 0099-1767/2000 $12.00 +0 18/61/110579 doi:10.1067/men.2000.110579
perfectly ready to accept the challenge, and I thought someone should put that in writing! As seasoned veterans, our focus must be on sharing our knowledge, training our young nurses, and providing needed leadership. We must also be willing to encourage persons to enter nursing to begin with. As statistics indicate, the nursing population is aging. Thus we begin to feel the aches and pains of busy ED shifts, and it is increasingly important that we help young nurses acquire the necessary tools and watch them grow. The nursing shortage dilemma can be resolved only if we maintain the pool of available candidates.
The “sacred cow” of new graduates not working in the emergency department must be discarded. Second, we need to collaborate among ourselves. Frequently I hear nursing colleagues ask questions about patient care. Ideally, nurses will not only discuss the problems but share possible solutions. Looking for answers is more productive than focusing on problems. The mentoring concept fits with our colleagues as well. In addition to talking, how often do we help a fellow nurse or thank one for helping us? A thought would be to fit crutches for a co-worker’s patient, restock the linen in someone else’s area, or offer to administer charcoal when a colleague is extremely busy. Mentoring is more than just sharing knowledge. We can even help our “grumpy” colleagues. Why not a piece of peppermint candy atop their next chart to let them know someone cares? My point is simple. In addition to mentoring the young, we need to care for those around us. We need to voice our concerns, be empathetic, share our triumphs, and work
October 2000 401
JOURNAL OF EMERGENCY NURSING/Marett
collaboratively to provide the expected excellence in emergency care. A working condition dilemma can be resolved only if we work together to change what is real for us all.
Our focus must be on sharing our knowledge, training our young nurses, and providing needed leadership. We must also be willing to encourage persons to enter nursing to begin with. Finally, we must save energy for our golden years. Recently I spoke with an emergency nursing colleague who is still working at the age of 70 years. She said her secret was keeping her mind active, and then her body followed. The concept of caring for ourselves while caring for others definitely applies to our profession. Again, the mentoring concept applies to the graying population. Even though a host of resources are available to keep us looking good and feeling young, liposuction, facial peels, face lifts, hormonal replacement, personal training, health clubs, and hair coloring will not stop 76 million baby boomers from reaching middle age. Al-
though some persons describe emergency nursing as a “young person’s profession,” a mix of young and old is so much better. Young nurses have an abundance of energy and enthusiasm, and seasoned veterans have a wealth of knowledge and experience to share, a multitude of insights to give, and a desire to mentor our young colleagues. The dilemma of a lack of experienced caregivers can only be solved if we enjoy our chosen profession, continue to learn, and stay in it. Annual Meeting 2000 “fever” in Chicago was contagious. It spread to each of the lucky emergency nurses who attended. I know I definitely feel the effects. My energy level is high, and I feel like I am in a hyperdynamic state. I am ready for the many shifts until the next ENA gathering. Bring on the new graduates. I am ready to mentor. I am even willing to do 2 triage shifts in a row. Each time I work, I will look for opportunities to support my colleagues, perhaps by making up a stretcher, slipping a piece of candy in their pocket, and maybe even giving back that pen or pair of scissors that I borrowed. Last, I am going to relax a little and enjoy the many benefits of being an emergency nurse—mentoring, sharing, supporting, being positive, focusing on the good, and working to change the bad, because after all, it is just a matter of perspective. Reference 1. Beisser A. Available at: URL: www.bemorecreative.com/ cgi-bin/search16.cgi?keyword=Beisser&boolean= and&field=all&database=all.
The JOURNAL OF EMERGENCY NURSING welcomes the submission of unsolicited manuscripts and encourages calls to discuss potential articles. Karen Halm, Managing Editor: (800) 900-9659, x4044 Let us hear from you.
402 Volume 26, Number 5