Our partners in the East Florida Division have shared Fall Education Huddle Card. Please review the education and ensure you are aware and implementing Fall Prevention interventions at the facility you are staffing.
Thank you for your dedication to Patient Safety!
Topics: East Florida Division, All Network Staff
Hiring surged in June, according to the June 2021 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Hiring Situation Report, which showed that 850,000 new jobs were gained last month. The increase was the largest in 10 months and the unemployment rate ticked up to 5.9% from 5.8% the month prior. Most of the growth was seen in the service sector, reflecting signs of economic improvement.
That said, the healthcare sector lost 12,000 jobs in June, with hospitals recording a third straight month of job losses. Hospitals lost 5,500 jobs, and nursing homes lost 9,600 jobs in June. Those losses were slightly offset by 2,900 new jobs in ambulatory services. After seeing modest gains at the start of 2021, hospitals have recorded 10,200 job losses since April. Overall 537,000 healthcare jobs have been lost since the start of the pandemic in February 2020, with nursing homes making up the majority of the loss (-360,000), while hospitals have accounted for nearly one-fifth of all losses (-102,000) jobs. The only portion of the healthcare sector which saw growth throughout the pandemic has been within ambulatory care, which gained 75,400 jobs during the same time period.
Topics: Jobs Report
The East Florida Division will be converting from the Smith Medical IV Catheters to the BD Insyte Autoguard.
Included is an Education link from BD:
https://bd.showpad.com/share/dJpwowHux75bNHdtm9jLa
In addition live education will be provided in the facility by the BD Education Team during conversion process.
Thank you for your attention to this educational opportunity.
Topics: East Florida Division
Congratulations to Chris Ocampo, BSN, RN, on earning a DAISY Award!
Chris was nominated by a patient at HCA Houston Healthcare West for the kindness that he exhibited and the care that he displayed to both the patient and family. Read the full nomination below:
"As a nurse of twenty years, I had to write about a stellar experience I encountered with a nurse on the 6th floor. My father came in on hospice. I believe the home that he was staying at got scared because of how sick he had become. He was admitted from the ER to the 6th floor. My family had come up to see him, some had come to say goodbye. Chris Ocampo made our moments both comfortable and precious. He brought in my father's medication to keep him comfortable. He rounded on us hourly, which can be a challenge these days! He went above and beyond including the whole family in the plan of care and keeping us updated on the progress of the discharge. I am now at home with my dad having our final moments. However, it could not have gone so smoothly without Chris' help. Please let him know how thankful we were for his compassion. He was a shining light in a dark moment."
Please join us in congratulating Chris on his DAISY Award!
If you're interested in joining the HealthTrust team, click here to browse our available job opportunities.
Topics: Nurse Appreciation, Healthcare, HealthTrust, Nurse Recognition, DAISY Award
The Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard requires healthcare employers to have a written plan which outlines the processes and controls in place to protect employees from exposure to COVID-19. This COVID-19 Exposure Prevention Plan Training will introduce employees to new required elements of OSHA COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard content here…
Please complete the course on the next worked shift.
Attached is the HWS COVID-19 Employee Health Screening and Medical Management Policy
HWS Health Screening and Medical Management
Thank you for ALL you DO!
Topics: All Network Staff
A two-year-old Labrador retriever is helping keep patients, visitors and caregivers safe by sniffing for signs of COVID-19 at Doctors Hospital in Sarasota, Fla. "It's a distinct smell. The body's response to us fighting off COVID-19 is what the dogs are reacting to," explains Buffy's trainer Laska Parrow. The idea came about because Bob Meade serves as both a board member for the non-profit that trained Buffy, and is the CEO of the Doctors Hospital of Sarasota.
Learn how Buffy has become part of the hospital family in People Magazine.
Topics: Healthcare, COVID-19
Additional training is available in HealthStream catalog for self-enrollment:
Course Name: HCA Care Team (CTA)
Thank you for all you DO!
Topics: East Florida Division, All Network Staff
As we head into the holiday weekend, HealthTrust Workforce Solutions would like to wish you all the best for a great holiday and a Happy 4th of July! This 4th of July, we would like to honor those who have dedicated and sacrificed their lives for the freedom that our nation enjoys today. We are thankful for the commitment that has been and continues to be made for our nation as we strive for a better tomorrow.
We hope you and your loved ones a happy, safe and healthy 4th of July holiday weekend!
Topics: Special Holiday Message, Health & Safety, 4th of July
For safety and infection prevention compliance, employees who provide direct patient care, those who interface directly with patients, and those who handle patient equipment/supplies, food or medication that is consumed by the patient, may not wear any type of artificial fingernails. Natural nails should be kept clean and not exceeding beyond fingertip.
Thank you for your dedication to Patient Safety!
Amy Rushton, Vice President of Behavioral Health for HCA Healthcare, recently spoke about mental health awareness and how to practice self-care at work.
(Some responses have been edited for clarity).
I will say our leadership team at HCA Healthcare was very concerned about the impact that COVID-19 was going to have on everyone and tried to get things in place to provide support at all different levels in the company.
We are particularly proud of our nurse care hotline (800-480-1234), which is for nurses who are working in our facilities. That has been very highly utilized, especially during this past year.
In our facilities, we also posted electronic posters that reminded our staff members about signs and symptoms of stress. For our Behavioral Health service line, we had folks in divisions hosting wellness chats, which has been very well-received.
Some facilities set up a calming area where, if things were really stressful at work, colleagues could go to this room and just decompress.
In addition, our benefits department put together additional resources for our employee assistance program (EAP).
We’ve seen a whole bunch of different signs — from difficulty thinking clearly, confusion, difficulty problem-solving, making decisions and even some memory issues or misinterpretation of situations or comments.
Some behavioral signs may be risk-taking. This could be more alcohol consumption, conflicts with others, withdrawal and isolation. There are some physical feelings as well. We heard a lot about inability to relax and trouble sleeping. I think that was a huge one for many folks.
On the emotional side, there was anger, hostility, frustration, sadness, difficulty maintaining an emotional balance. There were a lot of symptoms related to excessive stress.
I think the most important way to address it is to ask them how they’re doing. I want to emphasize that it’s so important not to shy away from that conversation and to ask someone how they’re doing, really doing. Also normalize the experience that’s happened. We’ve all had extreme stress over this year. It’s okay for them to feel like they are stressed.
What’s important though, is to know that if it goes on for more than two to four weeks or interferes with your relationships, your work or your daily functioning, that’s when you really do need to seek some additional care.
I think it’s so important to take time for ourselves. For high achievers, it’s knowing when you feel slightly different.
I can’t stress enough the importance of knowing how your body feels and also recognizing that it’s okay not to feel okay. We have to take time to just breathe, be in the present and feel how our body feels. That’s the best way to take care of yourself.
Breathing in and out of your nose is such a powerful way to help calm yourself down. Also, taking a minute to just take a walk around the building, or eating, taking breaks, drinking fluids.
If you have a buddy at work that knows you, maybe check in with each other. And if you see someone maybe acting a little bit irritable, have permission with that person to say, ‘Look, you’re sounding a little irritable today, take a walk.’
Just be very mindful of how you’re feeling. It does happen that some people will look back on this time over the past year and start to get anxious. That’s okay, and it’s really important to talk about that, especially if it continues to come up and you’re feeling some of those symptoms of stress again.
I think, we need to normalize mental health, talk about how we’re feeling and acknowledge that it’s okay if you need some more support.
Topics: Healthcare, Mental Health Awareness
