Nursing Concepts
Group Activity
Staff meeting on Floor 2 of Nursing Facility. Issue is how to more effectively communicate with non-English speaking patients and their families, particularly on change of medication or procedural issues.
Type of Group
This was an informal group designed to begin the process of understanding how we can better communicate to non-English speaking clients and their families. It is likely that the group might evolve into a formal group with more structure and purpose.
Group Participants
In this meeting there were 6 individuals present. The Director of the Center, the Nursing Supervisor, the Charge Nurse for Floor 2, and three RNs. For the purposes of this analysis, we will label them DOC, NS, CN, RN1, RN2, RN3.
Goals/Purpose of Group
Recently, we have had several issues in which clients and their families did not have enough of a command of the English language to adequately communite appropriate changes in care, medication, tests, or needs. We realized that we do not have a system in place to handle all but the most basic linguistic issues, and then only on a more informal, ad hoc basis. The purpose of the meeting is to either develop a longer-term committee or recommendations for a fix to the issue.
Member Commitment
In this case, and fortunately, all members are committed to a proactive and positive solution to the issue. Everyone present at the meeting realizes that realistically, this is not a top-priority, because it does not impact the center daily or drastically reduce the type of care given. However, we all realize that in 21st century healthcare, populations are diverse and there must be procedures in place to ensure that the care model of nursing is followed and that we can advocate for the patient to our best ability, regardless of the linguistic barrier. We also realize that we cannot have a trained, in-staff,...
Instead, our solution must be generic enough to fit the needs of a diverse population while still maintaining high standards of care (Applying Nursing Care, 2011). In addition, with the presence of the Center Directory and Head of Nursing, there is a managerial commitment that indicates change is not only possible but feasible in the current budgetary situation.
Type of
Decision Making
Several decisions need to be made regarding the issue:
1. Does our organization with to put a translation program in place?
2. Do we have the funds or alternatives to do such?
3. What are the options available?
4. Have other departments or facilities experienced the same or similar issues?
5. Should there be a short-term (interim) solution?
6. Should this be a longer process in which research and recommendations are more thoroughly sought?
7. What goal(s) do we have for the end of this meeting?
Member Behavior/Participation
In this group, despite three managerial individuals, there was not a great deal of hierarchy present.
Body language was relaxed, everyone was respectful, and everyone in the group seemed to be driven by the need for a particular solution to the issue. There was no real disagreement, just some differences on a timeline or appropriateness of moving this group into a more formal effort in which more research, presentations, or fact-finding is done. All agreed that we needed a short-term solution post-haste, and then could move forward with a longer-term, broader, solution. Everyone in the group spoke more than once, and certainly, there were
leaders who championed the issue, particularly RN2 and the CN, likely because those two individuals had the most recent contact with patients and families who were non-English speaking.
Group Interaction Pattern
Initially, the Director began the meeting with an overview of the issue, then deferred to the CN to review the situation. Once that was done, the CN deferred to RN2 to explain the details of the most recent interactions. CN and RN2 were the center of the questions from all sides, but there was, in this case, no real side-interactions, teaming up to support or detract one point-of-view, or to align members. Instead, the overriding need was for solutions…
