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Health Care - Chapter 4

Chapter overview

  • To succeed in health care, you must combine personal qualities with professional skills.

  • Attitude and integrity affect job performance as much as medical skills.

  • Besides clinical abilities, skills like time management are crucial.

  • Health care professionals should value human dignity, take care of their own health, and cope effectively with stress.

Key terms

Altruism: concern for the welfare of others; reflected in care for patients and colleagues.

Autonomy: the right to self-determination; patients make decisions about their health care; also defined as the ability to act and make decisions without the help or advice of others.

Competence: proficiency in learned tasks, including the ability to follow steps and procedures accurately, and a willingness to learn and adapt to new technologies.

Human Dignity: the value of the inherent worth and uniqueness of individuals, which includes providing culturally sensitive care and protecting patient privacy and confidentiality.

Initiative: the ability to take decisive action when needed, using independent reasoning and sound judgment.

Public Service: contributing to the good of society through one's work with others.

Stress: caused by physical, chemical, or emotional factors and can lead to physical and emotional tension.

Value: a belief about the worth or importance of something that acts as a standard to guide one's behavior.

Value System: a ranked set of personal principles that leads to a personal code of conduct.

Personal Attributes

  • Personality development: develops early and shapes how you cope at home and work.

  • Important personal attributes for health care professionals include:

    • Enthusiasm

      • Shows when you’re passionate about the career and care for others.

      • Leads to better job performance.

      • Important for building trust with patients.

    • Patience

      • Ability to stay calm in difficult, stressful situations.

      • Essential when interacting with patients and coworkers; helps prioritize patient well-being.

    • Optimism

      • Positive attitude influences performance and can be contagious to patients.

    • Self-esteem

      • High self-esteem fosters confidence in skills; improves patient and coworker trust.

    • Honesty

      • Builds trust with patients and colleagues; truthful communication.

    • Cooperation

      • Interacting well with health care team members; teamwork improves care quality.

      • Respect for needs, feelings, and ideas of others on the team.

    • Organization

      • Being organized helps access to materials, supplies, notes, charts, reports, schedules, etc.

      • Time efficiency and quality of care improve when organized.

    • Responsibility

      • Completing assignments on time; fulfilling obligations; reliable in health care settings.

    • Flexibility

      • Health care work often requires adaptability to varying times and tasks.

    • Sociability

      • Comfort interacting with a wide range of people; affects patient care and teamwork.

Professional Attributes

  • Professionals must behave according to the standards of their field.

  • Professional qualities develop from school to clinical practice and beyond.

  • Some qualities are both personal and professional (e.g., compassion, empathy, sympathy, honesty, integrity, accountability).

Essential Professional Attributes

  • Dedication to public service

    • Health care is a public service; many view it as a calling or life’s work.

    • Motivates fulfillment through serving others.

  • Motivation to help others / job fulfillment

    • Rewards include independence, ongoing development, and economic security.

    • True fulfillment comes from passion and desire to help, not just salary.

  • Trustworthiness

    • Patients and coworkers rely on dependability and honesty; attendance reflects dependability.

  • Competence

    • Proficiency in learned tasks; ability to follow steps and procedures accurately.

    • Willingness to learn; ongoing education needed due to evolving technologies.

    • Change: willingness to adopt new methods and technologies.

    • Admit mistakes and accept evaluation from others; keep communication open.

    • Accept constructive criticism; avoid defensive reactions.

  • Good time management

    • Complete work timely while handling multiple tasks; essential when patient well-being is at stake.

    • Prioritize tasks; avoid procrastination.

  • Initiative, problem solving, and critical thinking

    • Take decisive action when needed; use independent reasoning and sound judgment.

  • Good communication skills

    • Clear verbal and written communication with team members and patients.

    • Chapter 5 covers health care communication in detail.

  • Professional attitude and behavior

    • Outward display of integrity, honesty, dependability; proper language, manners, dress.

    • Handling mistakes responsibly builds trust.

  • Dependability and honesty in communication

    • Being straightforward with patients and colleagues.

Values

  • Values are beliefs about worth or importance guiding behavior.

  • A value system is a ranked set of personal principles leading to a code of conduct.

  • Values influence beliefs about needs, health, illness, and clinical practice; essential in health care.

  • Development of values:- Formed over time through experiences with family, culture, and environment.

    • Modeled from parents, peers, colleagues; learned through education or institutions.

  • Important values in health care include:- Altruism

    • Respect for patient autonomy

    • Respect for human dignity

Altruism

  • Concern for welfare of others; reflected in care for patients and colleagues.

  • Professional behaviors include:- Understanding diverse cultures, beliefs, and perspectives.

    • Advocating for vulnerable patients.

    • Taking risks for patients and colleagues.

    • Mentoring other professionals.

Respect for Patient Autonomy

  • Right to self-determination; patients make decisions about their health care.

  • Professional behaviors include:- Planning care in partnership with the patient.

    • Honoring patients’ and families’ rights to participate in decisions.

    • Providing information to enable informed choices.

Respect for Human Dignity

  • Value inherent worth and uniqueness of individuals.

  • Professional behaviors include:- Providing culturally sensitive care.

    • Protecting privacy and confidentiality of patient information.

    • Designing care with sensitivity to individual needs.

Stress Management

  • Stress is caused by physical, chemical, or emotional factors and can lead to physical and emotional tension.

  • Types of stress:- Eustress (good stress): ext{eustress} ext{ (good stress)}

    • Distress (bad stress): ext{distress} ext{ (bad stress)}

  • Stress producers (common sources):- Living a chaotic or disorderly lifestyle

    • Lacking the ability to say \"no\"

    • Taking problems and criticism personally

    • Maintaining unrealistic expectations

    • Dealing with excessive demands

    • Remaining inflexible

    • Suffering self-doubt

  • Signs of stress include physical signs like anxiety, agitation, or depression; negative attitudes harm you and coworkers.

  • Strategies for coping with stress:- Set priorities

    • Keep life and work simple

    • Identify and reduce stress producers

    • Shift thinking

    • Enlist social support

    • Relax and renew

Set Priorities

  • When overwhelmed, identify absolutely necessary tasks and place them at the top of the to-do list.

  • Distinguish between necessary and optional tasks; focus on the important ones first.

Keep Life and Work Simple

  • Avoid overloading schedules; combine errands/tasks to save time and reduce stress.

  • Learn to say no to nonessential commitments.

  • Don’t rely on complaining to reduce stress; it’s ineffective.

Identify and Reduce Stress Producers

  • Write down stressors to brainstorm elimination ideas (e.g., lay out clothes the night before, start morning routine earlier).

  • Expect new stressors as life changes.

Shift Thinking

  • View stressful circumstances as opportunities; accept difficult tasks as part of the job rather than complaining.

Enlist Social Support

  • Build a network of family, friends, coworkers, classmates, religious groups, or shared-interest groups.

  • Discuss problems to gain new perspectives and support.

Relax and Renew

  • Take breaks and engage in enjoyable activities to reduce stress.

  • Examples: time with family, relaxing activities, or humor (be mindful of others’ feelings).

Personal Health

  • Sustaining health is critical to providing quality care and modeling good behavior.

  • Proper nutrition, exercise, and sleep reduce stress and support health.

Nutrition

  • Food as fuel; a proper breakfast fuels the day and supports stress management and weight control.

  • MyPyramid.gov (USDA) provides nutrition information.

Exercise

  • Regular aerobic activity boosts energy, reduces stress, and improves mood.

  • Benefits of aerobic exercise include:- More energy

    • Lower stress levels

  • Newsreel: Diet and exercise can reduce cancer risk; a study across multiple countries found that healthier living could prevent up to 34\% of cancer cases in the U.S. (AICR & WCRF).

  • Public health implication: emphasize prevention through nutrition and exercise to reduce cancer and other diseases.

  • Exercise recommendations: at least 3\times\, \,20-30\text{ minutes} per week; progress to 4-6\times per week; include rest days.

Sleep

  • Sleep supports task efficiency and stress management; fatigue worsens stress.

  • NIH cites about 8\text{ hours} per night for most adults.

  • Factors that disrupt sleep:- Caffeine: stays in system 6\text{-}12 \text{ hours}.

    • Nicotine: withdrawal may disrupt sleep.

    • Alcohol: can cause later sleep disruptions.

    • Food: large meals or heartburn can disrupt sleep.

  • Benefits of healthy diet and regular exercise include improved sleep quality.

  • If sleep problems persist, consult a physician.

  • Good rest supports physical, emotional, and mental health.

Personal Hygiene and Grooming

  • First impressions matter; professional appearance supports perception of competence.

  • Dress guidelines:

    • Clean, pressed, tear-free clothing

    • Polished, clean shoes

    • Plain, simple jewelry

  • Hygiene guidelines include:

    • Daily showers

    • Unscented deodorant

    • Avoid perfumes and scented products

    • Avoid foods with strong odors (garlic, onions) when interacting with others

    • Hair clean and pulled back

    • Nails trimmed and clean

    • Natural, unscented makeup applied lightly