Change is inevitable in healthcare. I discussed change a little bit in my previous post about how healthcare will be focusing more on preventative care. However change happens daily in the healthcare field. Changes happen with patient status, educational requirements, technology, work schedules, nurse-patient assignments, and many more. Some say change is easy where others say change is difficult. Implementing change in healthcare a lot of the time is implemented by the manager and/or leaders in the field. Staff and other recipients of change are all viewed as an intefral part of the change process. Some of the decisions to make a change go through a theory process. A theory that is frequently used is Lewins Change Process. His change process has three elements.
Lewins Change Process
1. unfreezing
2. moving (change)
3. refreezing.
The unfreezing element is considered "thawing out" the system and is the stage that gets ready for the change. This stage introduces the change to staff and gets them prepared and motivated (hopefully) for the change. Trust, respect, and strong communication to help unfreeze individuals effectively. Effective team building, leadership, and motivation are key strategies that are helpful during this process. Education can also be part of this process if new equiptment or anything effecting the patient is changing.
The second change is the moving/change element of Lewins theory.This is not an easy time as people are learning about the changes and need to be given time to understand and work with them. Support is really important here and can be in the form of training, coaching, and expecting mistakes as part of the process. This is when the change is implimented. This stage could never work without a strong and effective "REAL TEAM" behind it.
Lastly, the refreezing is when all the changes have stabilized, has become a part of the norm, and feels comfortable.
I've found the Kurt Lewin model useful to frame a process of change for people that is quite easy to understand. Of course each stage can be expanded to aid better understanding of the process, but that is how many theories are.
WHAT I THINK ABOUT CHANGE....
I deal with change everyday in the float pool. I am hardly ever on the same unit that I was on the previous day, and sometimes have to float to a different unit half way through my shift. I have really grown to like that change. It keeps me on my toes and I am constantly learning something new everyday I go to work. Now, some people like that for that reason they are in the float pool, and others have no interest and despise when their over staffed and it is their turn to float. At my work we are also implementing change in implementing new glucometers. We are in the process of unfreezing. Each employee has to do some educational learning and attend a class to get them used to the idea of this change. We will be in the "moving/change" stage next week. I like change because I know it is apart of my career and I need to be flexible.
Huber, D. (2006). Leadership and nursing care
management (3rd ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Saunders Elsevier
HOW do YOU handle CHANGE? Are YOU in the middle of any kind of CHANGE?
Kellie,
ReplyDeleteI think I handle change fairly well. I too am on the float team and deal with change all the time. I like the change of people, units, and acuity levels. I think with change comes a lot of learning and an increased knowledge base. A change that stands out the most is when the hospital I work at when to scanning name bands for medication administration. This was a huge change for the nurses and some were not pleased. We are now in the refreeze phase as it is permanant.
Great Post
Jamie