John F. Clark 
From age 15, Newton Medical Center Chief Clinical Officer Heather Porter knew what she desired to do. Getting her start as a dietary aide at the nursing home in her fatherland of Moundridge become the first of many steps she might grow to be taking in a career committed to supporting others.
“Truly, it simply is at my core — being a nurse,” Porter said. “It simply always spoke to me and changed into a passion of mine.”
Working in the area, Porter always climbed the rungs of the professional ladder from a dietary aide to certified nursing assistant to earning her Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing. She even labored as a medical/in-depth care unit nurse at NMC for two years before pursuing her grasp’s diploma turned her awareness to case management and population fitness.
Both case management and populace fitness were relevant to Porter’s role at NMC during the last 15 years. She admitted they might stay critical factors in her new position as Chief Clinical Officer — as the commitment to sufferers continues to push beyond the boundaries of the hospital.
“Instead of searching simply at the intense care of the affected person’s contamination, what we do — and that honestly is a number one aim of ours, to deal with that acute episode of illness — we also observe what interventions need to occur before that illness after which after the infection,” Porter stated. “We’re searching for an extra holistic image of the affected person, and that’s what’s been absolutely interesting is to look at how you could assist that patient in achieving success out of doors of our partitions.”
Patient care has always been critical to Porter. It is evidenced outdoor her work on the sanatorium, as she additionally serves on the board of the Missouri-Kansas American Case Management Association chapter, which advocates for regulatory adjustments for insurance coverage for sufferers.
Admitting the power and ardor for nursing usually existed, Porter did say she has had super function models at NMC assisting her in passing above and beyond in her affected person care and making that more commitment to a successful treatment. Porter turned into lately diagnosed as a nominee for the Kansas Hospital Association’s Health Care Worker of the Year award for that willpower.
Receiving that popularity is others an exceptional honor, passion Porter stated, though she becomes Caring quick to notice how lots
it is tied to the relationships she has fostered in her career at NMC, preceding work (i.E. Lengthy-term care facilities), and out within the network (with Fire/EMS departments).
“It’s humbling because I experience that award must absolutely go to a good institution of my friends because it’s surely taken loads of collaborative effort,” Porter stated, “and I do have an awesome organization of friends that if I’ve had a concept and I’ve researched it and discovered how we could practice that for our network, I’ve had a terrific engagement with the multidisciplinary group of humans each internal Newton Medical Center and out of doors Newton Medical Center.”
Porter said that finding your passion and constructing relationships are keys to correctly getting involved and contributing to the network. While her position with NMC can be more of an administrative one now, she is satisfied with the continued hazard to impact humans’ lives daily.
“I can say that there’s constantly something inside the day in which I’ve cared for a person in a few manners that has given me joy and that I nevertheless get excessive delight in caring for humans,” Porter stated.
Porter and the relaxation of the Health Care Worker of the Year nominees may be identified at noon on Sept. 7 at some point of the awards luncheon at the KHA Annual Convention in Wichita.
The answer is very simple – you do! Imagine how it would be if a team consisted solely of enthusiastic ‘ideas’ people – what do you suppose would happen? You would end up with a fabulous project with every possible refinement, and you would be thousands of dollars over budget. We need to have the ‘Yes, but… ‘ people to keep the team’s feet firmly on the ground, to keep it realistic, to point out potential problems and pitfalls, and make the team think. People work in different ways, and a great deal of research has been done on ‘personality types’ that influence the way they behave. These examples are discussed in Edward de Bono’s Six Thinking Hats, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicators, or the DISC Personality Profiles. The DISC personality system is considered to be a ‘universal language of behavior. These behavioral characteristics are grouped into major divisions called personality styles. They are:
- Dominance: Direct and Decisive. These people tend to be independent and results-driven. They are strong-willed people who enjoy challenges, taking action, and immediate results. The bottom line is their focus tends to be on the bottom line and results.
- Influence: Outgoing and Optimistic. These individuals tend to be very social and outgoing. They prefer participating in teams, sharing thoughts, and entertaining and energizing others.
- Steadiness: Stability and Status Quo. These people tend to be your team players and are supportive, cooperative, and helpful to others. They prefer being behind the scene, working in consistent and predictable ways. They are often good listeners and avoid change and conflict.
- Conscientiousness: Cautious. These people are often focused on details and quality.
- They plan, constantly check for accuracy, and what to know “how” and “why.”
Dealing With Issues, Problems, and Conflict
The conflict between colleagues has the potential to disrupt the workplace and the team spirit completely. Conflict in the workplace is corrosive, and if left unchecked, it can weaken an organization and perhaps even destroy it. To prevent what may start to be a relatively minor issue from escalating into a major one, conflict situations need to be identified and dealt with.
Good conflict resolution skills include a willingness to meet the needs of others. The issues involved in the situation must certainly be discussed and addressed, but what about a person’s human needs – the need, for example, to be a recognized and valued member of the team. These are important aspects of dealing with conflict situations and require good communication skills.
Causes of workplace conflict may include:
- poor communication
- lack of information
- changes to practices and procedures
- cultural misunderstandings
- colleagues vying for power
- staff dissatisfied with management
- weak leadership or change of leadership
- lack of empathy from colleagues or supervisors
- general complaints that are not dealt with
All of these issues can cause dissatisfaction and a lowering of staff morale. If acted upon sensitively and quickly, they can be resolved without any disruption to work.
As mentioned above, if they are ignored, then what may have started as minor problems have the ability to break down the harmony within the workforce completely. This, in turn, can affect an organization’s productivity as staff de-motivated. Poor productivity affects the organization’s revenue earnings, and this could result, in extreme cases, in the downfall of the business.
