Beyond the Pain

Healthy workplaces promote inclusionary behaviors. When nurses experience exclusionary behaviors such as bullying and incivility, there may also be hidden issues with acceptance of diversity in the workplace environment. Educating nursing staff on the importance of variations in age, culture, gender, sex, race, ethnicity, and religion in the workplace can help facilitate communication among staff. For example, organizations can use educational forums to discuss how different cultures vary in the addressing of conflict within the workplace; some cultures may prefer to reach consensus rather than be confrontational. Chapter 5 discusses strategies that nurses and organizations can implement, such as Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety (TeamSTEPPS). TeamSTEPPS is a curriculum that can be used to improve teamwork skills, communication, and build team collaboration.