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October 5, 2007
Negotiations and Dog Shows Are Often Mistaken For One and The Same
Last night we were in negotiations till late. Hospital administration is behaving badly. No big shock there.
The thing that was out of the ordinary is that there was a dog show of Yorkshire terriers at the same hotel where we were doing negotiations. So there were a ton of terriers around the property. They were rather cute and well behaved. I love dogs, and while I prefer large dogs I am friendly with small dogs if appropriate. These dogs were all very sweet. But they were everywhere. It made the entire experience rather surreal.
That and the fact that I hadn't eaten much. I had my regular salad for lunch, but negotiations went late so I tore into my emergency South Beach Diet Bar that was in my handbag. By about 9 pm I'd had 385 calories.
I was ready to eat management's committee, not negotiate with them. I could actually live off them for a long while, though I fear the saturated fat content of some of their committee members.
Finally we got done and then we spent some time writing an update for our members and then Edward and I adjourned to the bar. He had one drink and had to run home, but I was staying as I was meeting nurses at 6:30 the next morning to give them the update flyers.
I had a Ketel One and Diet Coke (wine at this bar is bad) and a salad with grilled chicken, lettuce, tomato, avocado, cucumber, and spring greens. I was so hungry, but fine by the time I was done with the salad.
Then I was up till 10:30 talking on the phone with a producer from Oprah who MIGHT want to interview us. I know I swore off media, but Ashley goddess says, "It's a law of the universe: You do not say no to Oprah." So I said yes. We'll see if it works out.
Tomorrow we're off to a wedding in Texas. MR is packing like five bags, I'm taking my Hello Kitty backpack. I'm exhausted and likely to remain so for the foreseeable future. The younger of the twins needs its mommy back, and I have to spend a lot of time getting that campaign where it needs to be. Early mornings, late nights. Somehow I will keep up with my exercise and my CR.
Will report as soon as I can.
The thing I find frustrating about negotiations is that hospital administrations fail to recognize that they will do better on every level, from patient satisfaction surveys to the bottom line (it costs $60,000 to replace an RN. It's cheaper to retain qualified staff) if they do what's right for the nurses. My nurses aren't asking for much. They want decent wages, a pension, some security about how much their health care premiums will be. Nurse to patient ratios so they know they can give the patients the care they need. Shouldn't we all want that?
I think that management gets so obsessed with control that they ignore the obvious fact: nurses actually care about the patients. It's nurses who determine if the patient has a good experience or a bad one. Let the nurses have a say: your patients will be happier. Let the nurses have a say and they'll find ways to save money by cutting out waste, not by cutting back on the quality of care. Let the nurses have a say and they'll make a better hospital, and a better health care system.
It's no big secret that I love my nurses. Every day one of them does something that makes me smile. Watching people learn that they have power, and how to use it for the good, is the most incredibly rewarding experience I can imagine. It's even better than 100 grams of kale with a cup of nonfat cottage cheese, a teaspoon of flax oil and two tablespoons of salsa.
And that's a lot, coming from me.
I'll leave you with this quote from Paul Simon:
What is the point of this story?
What information pertains?
The thought that life could be better
Is woven, indelibly, into our hearts
And our brains.
Posted by april at October 5, 2007 4:54 PM
Comments
Nurses are great! Just saw today how much of a difference they make. Hope you can help get them all they deserve.
Emi
Posted by: Emi at October 5, 2007 8:09 PM
Was the Oprah producer interested in your Medical Health field stuff or the CRON stuff?
Posted by: Jake Silver at October 6, 2007 5:39 AM
The mix of people in the hotel remind me of a librarians' meeting at the same hotel where the Avon ladies were meeting. Since I had once been an Avon lady, I really enjoyed the mix. We could always tell when the Avon ladies were the majority on the elevator. It really smelled good.
I used by work URL here. http://www.alvernia.edu/library
I'm so happy to be here after a year on the job. Great challenges and great people all around. Marti (April's mom)
Posted by: Marti at October 6, 2007 9:33 AM
Is that because there are bitches at both? ;-)
Posted by: Judith at October 6, 2007 10:24 AM
Hope you have fun in Texas. I'd love to hear your take on the place (I live in the DFW metroplex)
Posted by: bethsheba at October 8, 2007 12:41 PM