Healthcare workers have incredibly stressful, demanding, and often upsetting work. Of course, this has all been taken to new extremes during the pandemic, and healthcare workers are rightly being viewed as heroes during this incredibly difficult period. This means that healthcare managers need to know how to look after, support, and motivate their team during these times so that they can continue to work to a high standard, take pride in their work, and feel motivated each day. So, how can you go about doing this? Read on for a few tips for managing healthcare workers during this time that should help.
Make Support Available
One of the most important steps that you can take is to make sure that support is available for your healthcare workers. Healthcare workers have always had to work in extreme situations, but this has reached new levels during COVID-19, and it is easy to see why many are struggling with their mental health and burnout. Make sure that support is available and encourage people to come forward if they are struggling at all.
Create A Team-Based Mentality
During turbulent periods like this, it is important that healthcare workers feel that they are part of a team and have the support of their co-workers. You should try to create a team-based mentality with positive feedback, celebrating successes of all sizes together, encouraging communication, and using social events. When healthcare workers feel that they are part of a team, it can lift their spirits, help them to feel stronger, and pull together to provide the best possible level of care. You should also encourage mutual team monitoring and support so that staff are looking out for one another and help each other out if they are struggling at any point.
Provide Sufficient PPE
You need to make sure that your team always has access to sufficient PPE so that they can carry out their role safely and with peace of mind knowing that they are protected. This must include protective eyewear for nurses as they are amongst the most vulnerable when it comes to eye contamination. Face shields are particularly useful as they provide sufficient protection to the whole face while also discouraging nurses from touching their face (which can easily lead to transmission).
Encourage A Healthy Lifestyle
You also need to make sure that your team members are leading a healthy lifestyle in their spare time. This is challenging due to the nature of their work, but if they are leading a healthy lifestyle, finding ways to de-stress, and spending time with loved ones, then it can greatly improve their performance and help them to recharge their batteries. Encourage them to create schedules for their free time so that they can de-stress, get enough sleep, enjoy hobbies and socialize.
Hopefully, this post will help you to manage and look after your healthcare workers during this more challenging time. Healthcare workers have been heroes in recent times, but they are still human, and it is vital that managers know how to look after, support, and motivate staff at all times.
The Editorial Team at Healthcare Business Today is made up of skilled healthcare writers and experts, led by our managing editor, Daniel Casciato, who has over 25 years of experience in healthcare writing. Since 1998, we have produced compelling and informative content for numerous publications, establishing ourselves as a trusted resource for health and wellness information. We offer readers access to fresh health, medicine, science, and technology developments and the latest in patient news, emphasizing how these developments affect our lives.