You are currently browsing the monthly archive for May, 2007.
In 1973, my mentor and boss, the late Scott Houston, sent me to visit the late Dr. Herb Shore of University of North Texas long-term care leadership fame. Truth be known, Dr. Shore probably has more disciples in long-term care administration than anyone.
My objective in the visit with Dr. Shore was a report on “philosophies of administration” as part of my own administrative internship experience. As we began a tour of Golden Acres, where Dr. Shore served as CEO, I asked him to define his fundamental philosophy. “Very simple,” he said. “If I take care of the staff, they’ll take care of the residents.”
An enduring truth! Now, 34 years later, AAHSA’s Institute for the Future of Aging Services just completed a multi-year grant called Better Jobs Better Care (BJBC) funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and The Atlantic Philanthropies. Our March/April issue of futureAge summarizes the experience of the multiple BJBC sites and projects throughout the country. I urge each of you read that issue cover-to-cover and make a human resources plan based on it.
I was also struck by a speech I read from an event at Phoebe Ministries in Allentown, Pa. Though the President and CEO, Rev. Rodney Wells, is an eloquent clergyman, the speech actually came from Louise Santee, a certified nursing assistant (CNA) at Phoebe. Ms. Santee delivered the speech at a celebration of Phoebe’s success with Better Jobs Better Care.
In that speech, she said: “A CNA must have love in her heart for the residents, because it is more than just a job. When you leave work, you think about it all the way home, and then some. If, after you have done your care, the resident is smiling or has a twinkle in the eye, that is all the thanks you need. ” She says BJBC helped her “make things better” by “working together as a team,” which she says is “the Phoebe way.”
So, here’s what we can learn from Dr. Shore, Better Jobs Better Care and Louise Santee:
- Nurture the love in your heart.
- Conduct employee satisfaction surveys, act on the findings and measure employee recruitment and retention.
- Discuss what respect means to everyone in the workplace.
- Offer competitive wages, family-friendly benefits and career ladders and lattices.
- Teach and mentor people on leadership.
- Create a multi-cultural sharing program.
- Create an ongoing team-building program and teach continuous quality improvement-TOGETHER-at all levels!
- Invite policy leaders into your setting and let them hear from employees about the importance of the role of the care and service professions.
- Have fun, celebrate events and share sorrows.
- Oh, yeah… remember to nurture the love in your heart — because it’s not just a job.
All these have stood the test of time. If we take care of employees, they’ll take care of the people we serve. Or, better jobs generate better care. It’s the right thing to do. And remember what Louise Santee says about the unique rewards of a great day’s work. Bigger hearts, better jobs, better care!
LarryWilliam L. Minnix, Jr., D.Min.
AAHSA President and CEO
