Staff Development Programmes-Its Necessity for Quality Patient Care

Professor and Head, Pediatric Nursing Department, CMC Vellore, India

*Corresponding author: Mary Anbarasi Johnson, Professor and Head, Pediatric Nursing Department, CMC Vellore, India, Tel: 0416-228-2717; Email: [email protected].

Received Date: May 12, 2023

Published Date: June 17, 2023

Citation: Johnson MA. (2023). The Lifestyle of Families Embracing an Autistic Person in Basrah City. Mathews J Nurs. 5(3):20.

Copyrights: Johnson MA. © (2023).

ABSTRACT

Staff development is essential for quality nursing care as nurses need to update the current trends in nursing, every institution needs to take efforts to conduct periodical staff development programs. Patient safety is a prime concern of every health team member and therefore keeping in power with the trens and updates is crucial. The essential components of staff development programme are that every employee needs mentors. In order for employees to develop and grow, they need access to mentors. Every employee should be a coach in a peer-to-peer learning program. Regular knowledge sharing between employees should be encouraged. Development plans should have clear goals. There should always be time for reflection and career-pathing. This article would emphasis on the need for staff development programmes to be organized in every institution for better patient care. The author would bring in the need for flexibility, communication skills, conflict resolution, tactfulness, and work ethic, and leadership Skills to be developed by all employees and the staff development programmes would enable the employees to development those essentials needed for effective functioning.

Keywords: Models, Staff Development Programme, Concepts.

INTRODUCTION

Staff Development is the process of assessment, development, and evaluation that enhances the performance or professional development of health care providers.

According to the National Nursing, Staff Development Organization (NNSDO), Nursing Professional Development is the lifelong process of active participation by nurses in learning activities that assist in developing and maintaining their continuing competence, enhance their professional practice, and support achievement of their career goals [1-8].

BACK GROUND

Employee development is a process of improving employees’ existing competencies and skills and developing newer ones to support the organization’s goals.

Inherent in this definition is the following finer points of interest:

• Employee development isn’t just about developing organizational L&D strategies
• It’s more than just implementing mandatory employee training
• It goes way beyond meeting with employees annually to discuss their shortcomings and highlighting improvement needs

When done right, even though employee development requires investment (time, effort and financing) from the company, those investments will more than pay off over the longer-term.

For instance, sometimes letting go of an employee with limited skills, or developing those skills to the organization’s standards, will both cost money. However, if those development efforts result in longer-term employee retention, that’s a win-win situation for everyone concerned–thanks to a well-thought-out employee development strategy.

In the above scenario, what has employee development done?

• It has avoided the costly (and sometimes protracted) process of hiring a replacement for an outgoing employee
• It has preserved a lot of “sunk capital” already invested in that employee in terms of his/her organizational experience and expertise
• It allows HR professionals and L&D experts to build upon (rather than build from scratch) organization culture (different from technical experience and expertise) already inculcated into that employee

All-in-all, further developing an employee results in getting human assets up and running, to organizational standards, much more efficiently than onboarding or indoctrination training of freshly hired employees would.

DEFINITION

• Staff development refers to all training and education provided by an employee to improve the occupational and personal knowledge, skills and attitude of vested employees.

CONCEPTS OF WELFARE

• To safeguard the interest of employees and secure them by suitable legislation, living wage, healthy working condition, limited hours of work, suitable machinery for settlement of disputes between employers and workman and protection against old age, sickness and unemployment.

OBJECTIVES

1. Provide better life & health to the workers
2. Make employees happy & satisfied
3. Relieve industrial fatigue
4. Improve intellectual, cultural & living status

IMPORTANCE AND NEED FOR STAFF DEVELOPMENT

1. To update knowledge, skill, and practices with the advancement in the medical field
2. To cope up with rapid societal changes and improvements in health sciences
3. To fill the demand and interest of the public in health promotion
4. To fill the gap due to increased specialization and research among nursing personnel
5. To have a challenge in growing unionization and legislative control of nursing
6. To help nurses to be aware of unfamiliar practice roles and rules
7. To emphasize quality rather than quantity.

PRINCIPLES INVOLVED IN STAFF DEVELOPMENT

• Activities must base of needs and interest of employees and organization.
• Learning is combination of theory and experience. Learning is internal, personal and emotional process.
• Learning involves changes in behavior.
• Learner should be encouraged to contribute in learning process.
• Problem solving approach is well suited because; effective learning takes place when there is need/ problem.
• Positive reward is effective. Teaching-learning should be based on educational psychology.
• Learning can be maximized by providing favorable condition.
• Learning is active process, i.e. teacher and learner should be active in learning.
• Teaching must satisfy learning needs of an individual.
• Use variety of sources for learning as adult learners have wide range of previous experience

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES OF STAFF DEVELOPMENT

• To improve the knowledge, competence, and attitude of the staff
• To maximize potential and utilization of staff
• To identify the training needs of staff
• To assist new entrants in getting adjusted to a new environment, new roles, and responsibilities
• To satisfy the interest of the staff in a particular area
• To have competent and talented persons in the organization
• To develop staff professionally and personally
• To build sound and professional work culture
• To reduce turnover and absenteeism
• To fill the gap between senior and new staff and provide job satisfaction.

ADVANTAGES OF STAFF DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME:

• To improve the knowledge, skill, and attitude of nurses
• To develop competent future nurse managers and administrators
• To develop a positive attitude and inculcate motivation among staff to work hard
• To prepare nurses to assume increased responsibilities To educate new nurses on workplace culture issues specific to that hospital
• To improve professional standards by keeping all nurses with updates

Figure 1. Staff Development Models.

Figure 2. Readiness, Planning, Trainer’s preparation, Implementation and Maintainanace Model.

Figure 3. Iowa Model.

Figure 4. Components of Staff Development.

Figure 5. Staff Development Methods.

FUNCTIONS OF STAFF DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

• Determination of administrative structure of staff development program.
• Determination and establishment of organizational methods, policies and procedures
• Communication for the utilization of facilities and resources
• Determination of organizational and individual staff development needs and priority.
• Development of short-term and long-term objectives
• Promotion, development, implementation, and evaluation of programs
• Planning, coordination and utilization of community resources to assist in meeting the objectives
• Provision of a consultative service and a resource for information relative to staff development

FACTORS INFLUENCING THE STAFF DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

• Administrative philosophy, policies and practices of health care agency
• Policies, practices and standards of nursing and other health professionals
• Human and material resources within the health care agency and community
• Physical facilities within a health care agency and community
• Financial resources within a health care agency and community

Figure 6. The Staff Development Programme.

Figure 7. COVID Care Leaves.

STAFF DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

• Anything done for the comfort and benefit for the employees
• Helps in keeping the morale & motivation  Improves staff retention
• Labor welfare is a very broad term covering from social security to such activities as medical aid, creches, canteens, recreation, housing, adult education, arrangement for transport of labor to and from workplace to residence, etc.
• Humanistic- to enable the worker to enjoy fuller and richer life.
• Economics- to improve the efficiency of the worker.
• Civic- to develop a sense of responsibility and dignity among workers.
• Articles 41, 42 and 43 of constitution relating to concept of welfare highlight the concern of the state for labour welfare.
• Article 41- effective provision for securing the right to work, to education, old age, sickness and disablements.
• Article 42- provision for securing just and human condition of work and for maternity relief.
• Article 43- to secure by suitable legislation to all workers, agricultural, industrial or otherwise, the living wage and condition of work to ensure the decent standard of life, leisure, social and cultural opportunities."
• Employment
• Job description
• Working hours: 40 Hours/Week, Compensation for extra working hours, weekly day off & all the gazette holidays
• Workload/working facilities: Nurses are not responsible for damage/loss of materials
• Wages: Uniform pay on the basis of posts
• Promotional opportunities based on merit cum seniority
• Career developments: Provision for deputation for studies after 5 years regular services.
• Opportunities for attending refresher course every 2 years.
• Accommodation
• Transport arrangements during odd hours, calamities etc.
• Special incentives for meritorious works
• Dearness allowances
• HRA
• City compensatory allowances
• Nursing allowances
• Uniform allowances
• Washing allowance
• Occupational safety: Free medical aid/CGHS
• Risk allowances
• Other allowances–Children education schemes, crèche
• Savings
• National savings scheme
• Social security scheme
• General/public provident fund
• Gratuity

Leave benefits

• Casual leave
• Earned leave
• Maternity leave
• Child-care leave
• Commuted leave

Health of the Employees

• Pre-employment health screening
• Periodical health status review
• Family health education services
• Maintenance of health records

Health Benefits (ESI Act)

• Medical benefit
• Sickness benefit
• Maternity benefit
• Disabled benefits
• Dependent benefits

CONCLUSION

In my personal opinion and experience I had found that when more care and attention is paid for the staff development through the staff development programmes, the staff morale, conflict resolutions, patient satisfaction and staff satisfaction have improved. Nurses need to update themselves and every institution needs to strive to keep their nurses updated with current knowledge in nursing which can be facilitated through the staff development programmes. Nurses need to attend the staff development programmes regularly to gain knowledge and to translate that knowledge in to patient care as patient safety and quality patient care is our prime concern.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

None.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

Author declares that there is no conflict of interest.

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