First few Article Sentences
The large hospital conference room was quiet when I walked in, but the emotional temperature in the room of highly trained healthcare employees was high. Their faces revealed stress, anxiety, frustration, and for some, resignation. When I asked about the workplace culture, people squirmed, shifted their gaze and then, after a few moments, their responses began spilling out. Their complaints included: lack of trust, ineffective leaders, poor communication, lack of teamwork, blame, gossip, constant changes, and, most of all, the underlying fear. Alarmingly, they described how this affects patient safety, the teamwork needed to care for patients, and their own emotional security. They shared that they love their profession, like their co-workers, care about their patients, but they are exhausted, discouraged and feel disenfranchised. Unfortunately, I hear these scenarios at many hospitals and healthcare clinics. The results are high turnover, lack of loyalty, disengagement, incivility, absenteeism, accidents and safety issues.