Care council membership

[resus]

I am the co-chair of my unit's care council and one of the issues that we are having is low (and somertimes no) attendance of the meetings. We meet once a month to discuss issues within the unit. The other chair and I always advertise and personally invite people to attend or let us know any questions or concerns that they would like the council to address. Some of the things we have accomplished in the past are uniform changes and getting a new breakroom closer to the patient care area.

I would appreciate any ideas on how to increase involvement by the staff. Our director is very open to changes and suggestions by the council and I feel that we could accomplish a lot if there was more participation. Please share any experiences any of you may have had with this or any suggestions.

Resus

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

Unfortunately, I have a factory worker mentality. I am not going to attend a meeting on my own free time unless something tangible is in it for me.

If something tangible is being offered to people who attend the meetings (being paid overtime to attend on one's day off, catered food, gift certificates, etc.), then I suspect that the attendance rate might increase substantially.

However, I do realize that the extras are not always in the budget.

[resus]

I forgot to mention that if one chooses to attend the meetings they clock in and are paid as if they were working on the floor.

[wooh, BSN, RN]

Make sure it's at a time convenient for night shift. Say 6pm so they can come in before their shift or 6am so people can come in before day shift and night shift is mostly finished up so they can attend. I hate when meetings are at noon and everyone acts surprised that nobody from night shift came. (Like all the day shift people would show up for a meeting at midnight!)

Snacks.

Make sure people are aware of the changes that you've made, so that they'll feel like there's a point in going.

Is there a way people could phone into the meeting? With the commute I have, I am NOT driving all the way to work on my day off for a 1 hour meeting. I've been much more involved since my workplace made it possible to phone in for meetings.

Snacks.

Mostly though, I think you just have to make it really easy to come. If I'm at work, and the meeting is when I'm trying to make my first rounds, I just can't do it. Lunchtime is better for me, the way the shift ebbs and flows, but like I said earlier, doesn't work for nights. Perhaps if you alternated months with each shift. Noon one month, midnight the next.

[wooh, BSN, RN]

I forgot to mention that if one chooses to attend the meetings they clock in and are paid as if they were working on the floor.

Paid is a must. But it needs to be convenient too. Those of us with a long commute, paying me for 1 hour when I was on the road for 2 hours (or when meetings at my work tend to be held, my commute can turn into 2+ hours just one way) are still a pain. But when I can phone in, I'll take an hour's pay to sit and talk on the phone for an hour in my jammies. :)

And you have to factor in people that have to get a sitter or just don't want to interrupt their days off. I have a million excuses not to go, so it has to be made as easy as possible for me, and I have to think it will make a difference if I go, that my voice will actually be heard.