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Biomedical subjects

Mélanie Lavoie-Tremblay

Publications and source records attributed to Mélanie Lavoie-Tremblay.

8 recordsLinked to original sources

Towards an integrated approach for the management of ageing nurses.

AIM: The objective of this study is to provide an overview of the ageing of the nursing workforce and to explore retention strategies centred on the entire professional life and on all age groups. BACKGROUND: The presence of an increasing proportion of ageing workers presents a major challenge to the nursing profession. Evaluation Presentation of theories about the development of a healthy workplace leads to the identification of a framework on which managers can base their management decisions. KEY ISSUES: Examples of incentives relating to the framework are presented which were expressed by both nurses under 50 years of age and those over 50. CONCLUSIONS: Introducing incentives centred on all age groups provides an opportunity to create a healthy workplace for all generations of nurses.

Age Factors↗

Improving the psychosocial work environment.

AIM: This paper reports a pilot project to evaluate the effectiveness of a participatory organizational intervention to improve the psychosocial work environment in one long-term care unit. BACKGROUND: Since the early 1990s, health care institutions in Quebec have been constantly changing in order to improve the efficiency of the health care system. These changes have affected the work environment and have contributed to higher rates of burnout and absenteeism among nurses and other health care workers. METHOD: The study participants were health care workers in a long-term care unit (n = 60). The participatory organizational intervention was based on a contract and carried out by a work team. Work constraints were identified, and an action plan implemented, The effectiveness of the intervention was evaluated by pre- and postintervention questionnaires: the Job Content Questionnaire, Effort-Reward Imbalance Questionnaire and Psychiatric Symptom Index. RESULTS: There was a significant increase in reward (P < or = 0.01) and a significant decrease in Effort-Reward Imbalance (P < or = 0.01) following the intervention. Absenteeism rates decreased from 8.26% to 1.86% over the study period, but in the rest of the institution remained the same. However, there was a significant decrease in social support from supervisors (P < 0.05) at post-test. CONCLUSION: Participation by health care workers and action plans targeting problematic aspects of the psychosocial work environment are key elements in interventions to improve their health. However, such interventions present challenges, such as the involvement of managers, involvement of all relevant participants, and re-establishment of trust within work teams. Recognition and respect must be re-established, and supervisors must engage with health care workers and give support at all stages of the intervention.

Absenteeism↗

Creating a healthy workplace: a participatory organizational intervention.

Participatory research is, in theory, an approach that is attractive and easy to apply. However, in practice this type of research poses numerous challenges. This article presents recent information on healthcare workers who have experienced a participatory organizational intervention aimed at reducing the work constraints and creating a healthy workplace. Three main challenges emerged from this experience: mobilizing the team and creating a relationship of trust among the participants; creating a healthy organization in partnership with those in other professions; and implementing the proposed changes.

Adult↗

How to facilitate the orientation of new nurses into the workplace.

The orientation of new nursing graduates into the workplace is an impressive challenge. A research study was performed to identify the key elements of a program that would address the various issues regarding this orientation. A team of researchers from Laval University and the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Quebec (CHUQ) used a descriptive and participative research method and identified five key elements that must be considered in order for this orientation to succeed.

Clinical Competence↗

New approaches of organizing care and work: giving way to participation, mobilization, and innovation.

Quebec's health network has undertaken large-scale organizational changes to ensure the continuity, accessibility, and quality of health care and services for the population. This article describes the optimal approach for making changes to the organization of care and work for patients, health care workers, and organizations. This participative action research was carried out by means of interviews and document analysis. One hundred participants were involved, describing a total of 34 projects for significant organizational change. Results include an optimal approach broken down into 4 phases, each of which includes steps, facilitating factors, and potential difficulties. The phases of this approach are: (1) sharing the vision, mission, and values of the organization and identifying the purpose and need underlying the change; (2) building alliances and validating the involvement of the various players; (3) conceptualizing and planning the project; and (4) implementing changes and continuing evaluation. It is possible to rise to the challenge of finding new approaches to organize care and work by giving way to participation, mobilization, and innovation.

Cooperative Behavior↗

Shiftwork: what health care managers need to know.

Shiftwork is one of health care worker's oldest problems and is known to have important implications on health. Health risks are compounded with age and the amount of cumulated shiftwork. No shift system is clearly advantaged, yet the worker's ability to choose the shift system seems to maximize adaptation to shiftwork. When designing a work schedule, it is important to take into consideration the shift pattern, length of the shift, and the number of consecutive days worked. A poorly designed work schedule can impact the quality of care, the personal and professional outcomes for health care workers, patient satisfaction, length of stay, unplanned absenteeism, cost effectiveness, and productivity. Long-term studies of shiftworkers may disproportionately represent workers who have adapted to shiftwork. Self-scheduling is an interesting alternative in the quest for a more responsive work environment and is a strategy for retention among new, mid-career, and senior nurses. Planned on-site napping may be a useful tool to combat the pernicious effects of sleep debt on performance. Guidelines must be developed and initiatives implemented and evaluated to protect health care workers, especially older female shiftworkers, from the negative impact of shiftwork as they represent a precious resource in a shrinking supply.

Adaptation, Physiological↗

Reorganizing care and work: process and productivity gains.

A Montreal-area hospital implemented organizational changes to improve the psychosocial environment for patients and health care workers and enhance organizational efficiency. This article describes a participatory approach to improving the organization of care and work, an approach focused on productivity gains in an organization. Productivity gains were analyzed in 13 units of the Department of Nursing, which had introduced a series of organizational changes. Changes introduced in care and work organization led to productivity gains in all units overseen by the Nursing Directorate. A reorganization of care and work based on the psychosocial work environment and staff participation can have positive outcomes, both for employees and for the wider organization.

Efficiency, Organizational↗