Name / Debra Morton, RN MLDR
Michelle Camicia, MSN CRRN CCM FAHA
Email /

Region / Northern California Kaiser Permanente
Affiliation/Site / Vallejo Patient Care Services

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

POSTER PRESENTATION

TITLE / Caritas Leadership: Creating an Authentic Caring Organization
PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE / ·  Why did your team do this work?
·  Our current healthcare systems are in need of transformative nurse leaders to provide vision and reform. Transformative leadership is guided by a spiritual journey of caring and healing and results in transforming self and system (Watson, 2005). The entirety of the system must be engaged to transition healthcare from a mechanistic, dehumanized operation to one that is humanistic. Two nurse leaders participated in the Caritas Coach Educational Program to reignite Caring Science in the Vallejo Medical Center. During this journey they assumed accountability for a culture of caring and implemented intentional strategies to increase caritas consciousness, creating a biogenic caring healthcare organization through leadership presence and practice of the Caritas ProcessesTM within self and system. This supports the Kaiser Permanente Nursing Vision to create a caring, healing, and collaborative environment.
·  References:
·  Watson, J. (2005). Caring Science as Sacred Science. Philadelphia PA: F.A. Davis Company.
·  Anderson, J. (2014) Unpublished dissertation: Exploring application of the caritas coach role in nursing practice. Abraham S. Fischler School of Education and Human Services, Nova Southeastern University
·  What were you trying to change/improve? According to the Theory of Human Caring, creating a biogenic environment begins with the individual. This is through developing Caritas Literacy, caring as a way of being/becoming/doing/knowing and to care for, heal, & touch the human spirit. Our goal was to lead by example in Caritas Consciousness and lead the nursing staff, nurse leaders, and other leaders in the organization to a deeper understanding of Caring Science and the Theory of Human Caring.
·  We approached this effort to improve the care delivery environment at the nurse, nurse leader, and system level.
PROCESS / ·  What steps did you take?
·  At the Staff Nurse Level:
·  We integrated Caring Science into a required educational program to refresh Authentic Hourly Visitation (AHV). This was attended by approximately 600 Patient Care Services Staff.
·  We piloted the Nyberg Caring Scale, Caring Intention Scale, & Watson Caritas Self-Rating Scale (modified)
·  We obtained photo albums for all units to place patient/family thank you cards for staff reflection. This was a practice that one of the units shared at one of the classes noted above.
·  We renovated select break rooms with healing color paint, relaxation chair, and reflections to promote a physical environment for the nurses to care for themselves.
·  We created a book of nurse’s “caring moments” that were shared in the above classes, in addition to a call for submissions.
·  At the Nurse Leader Level:
·  We added Caring Science as an agenda item at all Patient Care Services bi-monthly meeting
·  We presented an overview of Caring Science to the Patient Care Services (PCS) leaders
·  We join together as a leadership team in centering prior to historically biocidic, high-conflict meetings
·  WE communicate using Caring Science key terms, including a focus on biogenic, high energy words
·  At the System Level:
·  We implemented a reflection at the end of daily inter-department leadership huddle
·  We changed daily hospital text to leaders from, “High census alert: 109 at Vallejo” to “We are caring for 109 patients in Vallejo today”.
·  We integrated Human Caring Theory into the interview & hiring processes
·  Additional Spiritual Care staff were added to address this sacred dimension
RESULTS / ·  What were the results?
·  Overall rate hospital scores increased from the baseline period January-October 2016 to November 2016 to March 2017 from 71.6 to 73.3, a 1.7 point increase.
·  The care experience question, “The nurses provided care with loving-kindness” increased in the period as above from 70.6 to 73.1, a 3.5 point increase.
·  Self-reflection and journal entries reflect self-observed change. “I am now a more caring, compassionate nurse/leader/human being.”
·  Our observations of other leaders: In the morning Leadership Huddle all department representatives contribute to the reflection. More & more hospital leaders appear to be working from a humanistic perspective
·  Peer reflection comment provided during 360° performance review process: “Being a Caritas Champion, there has been a noticeable change in her energy and spirit for the better."
CONCLUSION / ·  What did you learn?
·  The Caritas Coach Educational Program (CCEP) deepens nurse leaders understanding of the Theory of Human Caring, providing a transformative experience to enable nurses to lead by example and create a more humanistic environment and improved care experience for patients. Partnering with another throughout the process supports learning and being in Caritas Consciousness.
·  It is very beneficial for the Chief Nurse Executive to participate in the CCEP program and lead this effort in the organization with the support of another nursing leader.
·  What advice would you give to others who would like to do the same or similar efforts? Take this journey with another in your work location to create synergy and partnership for sustained practice.
FUTURE PLANS / What are your next steps?
We will continue to model Caritas Consciousness and deepen our understanding of the Theory of Human Caring through reading, practice, encouraging each other and coaching others in Caritas Literacy. We will study one Caritas Process TM each week with our leadership team. We will encourage others to take this journey, and disseminate our work widely.