Mandatory Staff Meetings?

[trauma_junkie1]

Anyone have mandatory staff meetings on a regular basis? What do you discuss?

We have monthly meetings that are mandatory (miss more than two a year and they take away your vacation days, I kid you not!). They usually run about two hours in length and we discuss such critcal topics as the budget, new policies that managment is implementing, and occasionally, we have an inservice such as the one last month on how to use the new oral thermometer (step one: put probe under tongue, step two: remove when thermometer beeps. You can't make this stuff up).

Now, we all have to come in on days off for these meetings as we can't afford to spare people from the dept. A bunch of us are fed up with these wastes of our time and so we have decided to lobby top either get rid of them or at least change them.

I'd like to see us do something educational and that relates to practice. The last director we had used them to do case review where we'd go over a case and discuss what was done well, things that could be improved and even sometimes the physiology and pathology behind the disease/injury. Sometimes we'd even have an interesting or "rare" condition and we'd have a little training on how to treat it if we ever ran across it again. We had some of the best nurses I've ever worked with then and I ahve to think that this played a part.

I'd also like to see us go over new equipment that might not be so straight forward (unlike the thermometer). We recently got new Level 1 infuser/warmers and had no inservice on them. I learned how to use it when I was setting it up for a trauma and realized that we'd replaced the old ones! We didn't even get a memo that the old ones were gone and new ones were here, much less how to use it!

So, now that I've vented (I appologize for the long post!), does anyone else have these kinds of meetings? What do you discuss?

[Dixielee, BSN, RN]

I think we have all had our share of useless meetings. It is awful when you work night shift and the meetings at at 1400! The best situation I was ever in did have monthly meetings and inservices, BUT.......

Every nurse was responsible for giving one inservice per year, but it could be by providing a video, poster or written presentation. They were posted on the bulletin board and a sign off sheet was available so you would get credit for viewing. I had a card laminated (at hospital expense with manager approval) that was pocket sized and had standard flush protocols for all kinds of vascular access, i.e. PICC, portacaths, triple lumens, etc. That counted as my inservice.

As far as staff meetings, the manager held meetings at 0600, on the unit, all available would be there, at 1400 for day/evenings and again at 1800 for night shift/evening. The manager posted minutes from all meetings in a book to be read if you missed the meetings. The meetings were generally useful, brief and concise, but it takes a special manager to be able to do that. Most things can be covered in a memo posted in a communication book or employee board.

[Katnip, RN]

We have meetings once a month. We try to have them in the unit in an empty room. (HA! Like that happens very often) We split the staff, and take turns running in and out if we're busy. That counts as attending. They always email everyone the minutes from the meeting.

We have to attend 80% of the meetings each year. Not sure what happens if we don't. The only time you have to come in on your day off is if you aren't scheduled during the days they hold them. Usually meetings are twice a day for two days. And we get paid for coming in.

[talaxandra]

In theory we have a ward meeting once a fortnight, a leadership meeting (for senior staff) alternate fortnights, and staff inservices twice a week (either product info or case presentations etc). The ward meetings are minuted and available for staff who weren't present; the leadership meetings are minuted and available from the Charge Nurse (as staff-specific issues are sometimes raised).

In practice we have a ward meeting every 4 - 6 weeks, a leadership wmeeting about as often, and almost all our inservices are from drug reps. I'm coming on to days next year, so that's all about to change!

There's no attendance requirement - the union would have the hospital's hide, for a start. I'm up for all staff having to present once a year, and will be ensuring that this is initiated by the leadership group.

[hypnotic_nurse]

I have two jobs (kids are expensive when you're a single parent). At my full time job, our mandatory meetings are held when we're all there (it's all 8-5). And being off that day is discouraged, but there's really no penalty other than the direct supervisor getting her panties in a twist.

At my part time job, it's all the float pool part timers who meet. These are "mandatory" monthly meetings, but they always conflict with my full time job, so I make maybe one in three (it's laid back and I'm a conscientious employee, so it doesn't matter if I go or not). It's actually helpful to go (plus we get paid for it) since we're informed of policy changes, sign up for mandatory learning activities (since it's psych we have to do classes on restraints etc), and meet with our supervisor whom most of us rarely see outside of these meetings, since we cover the psych areas of two hospitals.