Self-Care for nurses that takes inspiration from professional athletes

Eryn Greene — There’s no doubt that working as a nurse can be stressful at times. However, a study published last year in the Clinical Nurse Specialist journal found that depressive symptoms are twice as likely to strike nurses as the general population. Nurses who are struggling might experience symptoms like decreased productivity, plus put patients at risk. Additionally, some studies have found that nurses are more likely to have higher body mass index numbers, especially if they often work fluctuating shifts.

A method for change

Anyone who is preparing for a career in nursing almost certainly has to prepare for high-pressure environments and the possibility of working odd hours. With that in mind, Ohio State University has a new program aimed at helping nurses thrive through the challenges of their chosen vocation.

Known as the Health Athlete/Nurse Athlete program, it's based on the Corporate Athlete Course, a method offered by two psychologists who worked with Olympic athletes. Specifically, it focuses on ways to improve energy and boost a person's quality of life in the process.

In 2001, downhill skier Picabo Street chronicled her preparations for high-profile events in the face of injuries, illness and other setbacks. However, she also went into detail about many of the sacrifices that she and other Olympians face during their chase for a gold medal. Everything from diets to training schedules to therapeutic massages is carefully planned out. To an athlete, self-care is an essential part of daily life, and nurses can learn from that approach, too.

What's involved?

Available as either a two or two-and-a-half day course, the Heath Athlete/Nurse Athlete workshop assesses each participant and encourages the idea that by taking simple steps to manage energy through strategies like nutrition and exercise, it's possible to make positive and lasting changes that improve health outcomes and can make a person able to work more effectively.

Program leaders also make it easier for participants to take skills home with them by including exercise resistance bands, guidelines about packing a nutritious lunch, and tips on how to gauge potential health risks. These real world topics are easy for nurses to rely upon once they return home. Plus, since all workshop attendees get resistance bands and are trained to use them before the completion of the course, they'll be on track to maintain a healthier lifestyle that includes vigorous exercise.

Yes, it's okay to take a breather

The fast pace of many nursing shifts makes it hard for some employees to find a moment to use the restroom, let alone relax during a lunch break. However, the Nurse Athlete/Health Athlete program aims to change mindsets by suggesting that taking small breaks throughout the day can make someone a more valuable asset to the nursing team.

At first, nurses might feel that taking a break is counterproductive, but often end up discovering that short breaks help them keep their productivity consistently high so they get more done than they would have by not taking a break at all. Since injuries are more likely during cases of overexertion, that's an even more compelling reason to pause for a moment to regroup. Even Olympic athletes allow themselves to take occasional breaks, especially when the pressure is extremely high.

The OSU program invites nurses to adopt the attitude of Olympic athletes and learn that self-care is an essential part of being able to work at one’s best. Arm yourself against the usual stresses of the nursing industry and remember that you’ll be able to excel at caring for others when you take care of yourself first.

 

About the Author

Eryn Greene writes educational articles that offer insight into professional opportunities and self care within the medical profession, as this article offers. 

Five organizational challenges and how to meet them

Kelly Smith — To help organizations succeed, key individuals need to be tasked with the efficient management of an organization insofar as its growth and achievement. Leaders are often expected to face a number of challenges, and in the 21st century, these challenges include:

• Globalization


• Ethics


• Diversity


• Teamwork


• Intellectual Complexity

To meet the challenges above, leaders should keep the following five concepts in mind:

Globalization Means Competition

Just like military leaders are often reminded that potential enemy forces are always preparing for the possibility of facing other forces in combat, strategic business leaders must always keep in mind that globalization and free trade foster competition. To this end, leaders must take time to learn about enterprises in other parts of the world within their industries, particularly when those enterprises are expanding their global reach.

Ethical Means Justify Ethical Ends

The best way for leaders to face a competitive ethical climate is to check their own moral compass. This means that they should become familiar with the ethos within their own industries and apply the adage of leadership by example. Cutting ethical corners will enable subordinates to follow a similar path; it is easier to explain and portray the means that will justify the ends, which means that leaders should take the time to instill ethics across their organizations.

Rich Diversity, Rich Organizations

Organizations are becoming more and more diverse each day, and that’s a very good thing. Leaders embrace diversity because it is a natural byproduct of globalization. Diverse workforces tend to be more effective, flexible and adaptive because individuals tend to learn from each other. Leaders should be sensitive and learn about different cultural aspects among their subordinates; in this fashion, they will learn to adapt best practices that can be applied to the enterprise.

Effective Teamwork, Effective Organizations

Managing relationships is at the heart of managing teams. Leaders must learn to foster relationships from the very first time they are introduced to someone, and they should encourage their subordinates to do the same, particularly with members of their work team. The glue that bonds teams together is trust; to this end, leaders should instill trust-building exercises among their enterprises.

Another important issue for leaders to recognize is that teams are far more effective at achieving goals than individuals, but some key individuals who can be trusted to work on their own should be given the opportunity to do so if they can perform better that way.

Fostering an Intellectual Organization

The Information Age is constantly encouraging people to seek knowledge, and this can be a challenge for leaders in the sense that they are now tasked with capitalizing this opportunity for enterprise improvement. Leaders must provide guidance in this sense by fostering intellectual endeavor, but they must do so without taking time away from the primary mission of the enterprise.

In the end, leaders depend on their ability to act and think accordingly, as well as their power to influence others in their organizations when they face any of the challenges listed above. This is crucial to the success of the enterprise they are tasked with managing.

 

About the Author

Kelly Smith writes articles about business and leadership.

 

Solar cooking and solar ovens in the world an energy alternative

Roxie Peters — Solar ovens are not objects of the future or of the past but an alternative increasingly used in every country in the world to cook without using other energy than the sun. The first solar cooker was invented in 1767 by a Swiss named Horace de Saussure, who made numerous experiments on the greenhouse effect and invented the first solar oven equipped with reflectors to concentrate sunlight.

Today there are thousands of models of solar ovens, and more recently, they invented concentration models that are based on the concentration of solar radiation at a point where you can place a pot, using a parabolic reflector.

What is a solar cooker?

A solar cooker is a device which uses sun to cook food or boil water. The vast majority of the solar cookers are not expensive devices and you can easily find solar cookers plans online. Generally they don't need fuel and cost nothing to operate, many NGOs are showing how they work worldwide to help reduce energy costs for poor families.

Using solar cookers also reduce desertification, caused by use of firewood for cooking. Cooking with a solar oven is a form of outdoor cooking and is often used when it is dangerous to cook because of high risk of accidental fires. If you like travelling, it’s a good product to put in your bag!

Solar cooking in the world

In Europe, only a privileged few who have a south facing terrace can enjoy solar cooking, but these cooking equipments are also used increasingly in countries where solar radiation is constant throughout the year and where resources for cooking are limited and have an impact on the environment.

In Africa, for example, they are essentially cooking with charcoal and firewood. It is good to remember that more than half of the world population has only this solution to cook every day, increasing deforestation and desertification in some areas.

This cooking solution has several impacts besides being expensive for these populations: Firewood collection is a very hard work and requires time that could be used to develop other activities in many homes and the smoke of this cooking medium each year causes many health problems for people.

According to a study made by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), an inhabitant of Africa consumes between 1 and 1.5 kg of firewood each day to cook, which represents about 500 kg of firewood per year and per person. If we calculate the impact on global warming, this represents 670 kg of CO₂ per person per year.

The solar oven being a thermal box designed to capture solar energy and keep warm inside, reduces the risk of burns, avoids the possibility of fire, prevents food from burning and loss of its nutritional value, and allows doing other activities while cooking food. Moreover, excluding the materials needed for the manufacture of a solar oven that can represent some kilos of CO₂ emitted, the big advantage is that it doesn’t pollute and it doesn’t need any additional energy than sunlight.

Are there disadvantages of cooking with a solar cooker?

Yes, there are some disadvantages: solar cookers are less usable in rainy weather but it has a fuel-based backup heat source in these conditions.

Also, solar cookers take longer time to cook food than fuel-based cookers. Using a solar cooker requires to start several hours before the meal for a cake. However, it requires less attention, so this is often considered a reasonable solution.

 

Data source: The Solar Cooking Atlas

Solar Cooking Atlas is a good website that aims to inform about solar cooking projects and worldwide solar cooking associations. It has numerous articles, photos, videos and solar cooking recipes available online.

How to find your organizational style as a leader

Mai Yung Sen — Leaders bear the greatest responsibility for the success of their organization or mission. Some leaders manage companies while other leaders manage causes. No two leaders will ever have the exact same style when it comes to managing their time, their responsibilities, their people, or their communication methods. What they will share in common, however, is a deliberate approach to how they tackle these issues.

SWOT:  Your Organizational Style

There are several different types of organizational styles. It’s important to distinguish that developing your personal organizational style as a leader is not the same as choosing your preferred type of organizational leadership. The former reflects how you approach your individual responsibilities in your role and the latter reflects how you manage your team. However, you can use the same type of SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis to find your personal organizational style as you do to manage your team or organization.

Strengths: Identify areas where you are naturally strong or what your aptitudes are. Think of the things that come easiest to you in your role. These represent your strengths and you will likely do them well with minimal time investment.

Weaknesses: After you know your strengths, recognize your weaknesses. For instance, you might have communications as a strength, but financial planning as a weakness. When you know your weaknesses, you can budget more time for those responsibilities or outsource them.

Opportunities: Opportunities extend past your daily responsibilities into your future goals. With opportunities, you recognize that you are leading not just for the sake of leadership, but because you have a mission or a vision that drives you. Identifying your opportunities will motivate you to streamline your personal work responsibilities to free up time to achieve these goals.

Threats: Threats are things that can drain your time, energy, enthusiasm, or effectiveness. From engaging in office gossip to spending extra time on tasks better outsourced to your staff, threats are the barriers that stand between you and your opportunities.

Apply Your SWOT to Find Your Organizational Style

Once your personal SWOT analysis is complete, you should have a list of things you do well (strengths), a list of things you struggle to do (weaknesses), a list of goals (opportunities), and a list of things that could impact your personal effectiveness (threats). From here, it is easy to develop your organizational style as a leader. You can also look at when and where you have the most energy. Some people work best in the morning while other people optimally perform later in the day. Some people work best in teams while others prefer to work alone. Having a daily agenda that includes greater portions of time allocated to strengths and opportunities in a conducive environment will maximize your effectiveness as a leader.

About the Author

Mai Yung Sen started an interior design company after graduation. The influence of leaders such as John Studzinski has led her to be successful in her own endeavors.