I Dare You to Drink the Vinegar

Life is fluid. Change is an inevitable in health care because of multiple factors including development of new technology (Atter, 2008), clinical practice changes (Callaly, & Minas, 2005; Piat, Sabetti, & Bloom, 2010), changing client demographics (Atter, 2008), scarce financial resources (Erwin, 2009), staff shortages, and many others. Mental health nursing in the hospital setting is a prominent area of change because of the shift from the custodial care model prevalent in the early and mid part of the 20th century, to a client-centered recovery-oriented approach that gained popularity in the latter part of the century.  This shift required a drastic paradigm shift from caring for to caring with patients and their families.  Compounded by the additional workplace stress of de-institutionalization, the result was fewer inpatient mental health beds and shorter lengths of stay (Lloyd, et al, 2009).  Unfortunately, change can be a major cause of workplace stress (O...

How much "free time" do you percieve you have when you're working a shift? How much do you believe that it is part of your responsiblity as a professional Registered Nurse to nurture students, new graduates and new employees in your workplace? The Early Days: Learning Without Guidance I remember when I was pregnant with my first child I worked in a community health centre as an addiction nurse. This was a temporary position that I took over from a nurse who had only been in the position a couple weeks and was asked to stop working there during my first orientation shift. My orientation (or lack thereof) left me bewildered about what the position actually entailed. With a little less than two years of experience as a Registered Nurse and my first position working semi-independently in a community setting I did not have complete understanding of what I was supposed to be doing. I spent most of my shifts waiting for phone calls from potential clients, taking stock of the nic...