Putting the TEAM in Health Care
On the forum’s first day, BCNU President Adriane Gear greeted the more than 200 attendees in her opening remarks, saying she was excited to be in a room full of nurse activists and leaders.
“True team building requires time, trust, and a shared commitment to our collective purpose. As leaders, it’s incumbent upon us to nurture environments where trust can flourish, every voice is valued, and collaboration is not just a concept but a lived reality.”
Gear then introduced Knowledge Sharer Carla George of the Squamish Nation, who welcomed the group.
George spoke about her father’s experience as a residential school survivor and the experiences of other family members going to racially segregated hospitals. She encouraged Indigenous leaders in the room to be voices and advocates, emphasizing her gratitude for the critical work nurses did during the pandemic. She then shared a song to honour all the nurses present.
THE IMPORTANCE OF KNOWING YOUR TEAM
This year’s forum was entitled TEAM: Transform, Engage, Activate and Motivate. Throughout the two-day event, multiple presenters shared their knowledge, experiences, and insight into the art of leadership.
“This theme encapsulates the essence of our collective mission—to not merely embrace change but to catalyze it, to not only participate but to fully engage, to not just exist but to ignite action, and to mobilize forces towards a common vision of excellence in health care,” said Gear during her opening remarks.
The forum’s first day continued with a presentation from David Allison, How Nurse Leaders Can Harness the Power of Shared Values. Allison is a researcher and founder of the Valuegraphics Project, an organization that identifies people’s unique internal motivators and helps people connect with others by learning about values.
“We can start thinking about ourselves as value-driven beings,” said Allison. “Our values will unite us.”
Based on a survey of the BCNU membership, Allison identified three “power values” among respondents: compassion, loyalty and service to others. He then added that when he conducted this survey with other industries, compassion didn’t always come out on top.
“Nurses in BC thrive as a community when we help people going through tough times”
- Guest speaker David Allison
“What this means”, said Allison, is that “BCNU wants to share in the struggles of other people. Shared struggles area strength.”
According to Allison, loyalty can come from relationships based on trust and respect, and service to others can be demonstrated by helping people with what they need.
“Nurses in BC thrive as a community when we help people going through tough times,” said Allison.
“Everything we do is about people, and people are driven by their values. People will trust more if they can see if their values are present.”
Allison recommended that leaders point out people who are going the extra mile.
SOLIDARITY AMONG NURSE LEADERS
Allison’s presentation was followed by Len Pierre, the CEO of Len Pierre Consulting. Pierre is a member of the Katzie First Nation. He is also an educator, consultant, social activist and traditional knowledge keeper. Pierre’s knowledge comes from Indigenous voices and perspectives passed down through generations of enduring crises, including colonization and genocide. His presentation, Circles of Solidarity for Leaders, explored tools nurse leaders can use when working in times of transformation, change and crisis.
To foster circles of solidarity, Pierre recommended that nurses develop their personal and professional relationships with respect and dignity, respond to oppression with action and resistance and cultivate cultures of critique.
Pierre also advised advocating for wellness for self and others. Advocating for wellness can include learning to say no, celebrating when people say no, respecting your mind, body and spirit, accepting yourself and practising humility.
According to Pierre, work also requires a balance between getting too close to work or being too distant from it. To attain this balance, Pierre expanded on the various ways to process and let go of thoughts about work, including an Indigenous ceremony that involves attending to thoughts before letting them blow away like clouds and giving them back to Mother Earth.
When it comes to working toward addressing anti-Indigenous racism, Pierre advised learning the skill of listening to each other and learning how to be allies for Indigenous people. He noted that Indigenous peoples are the only ones who can deem a non-Indigenous person to be an ally and that allyship is not a badge of honour, nor is it linear or static. You can only be an ally in a moment, he said, and that moment is rooted in action. He then emphasized the importance of listening as leaders.
“You have three ears, two on the side of your head and one inside your heart,” said Pierre.
FINDING YOUR PURPOSE
In the afternoon of day one, Ming Pilz, a consultant specializing in governance and leadership, spoke to the importance of purpose in leadership in accomplishing BCNU’s goals.
“Purpose is the reason for which something is done, or created, or for which something exists,” said Pilz. “It is the answer to the question why.”
Pilz asked forum attendees to participate in an exercise in which they considered their personal source of purpose. Members identified family, money, integrity, advocacy, self-care, joy and happiness, feeling needed and past experiences.
“If we can advocate for patients, we can advocate for ourselves.”
- Guest speaker Sara Fung
She then spoke about how purpose functions within BCNU. Pilz said different members will have different perspectives depending on their role within the union. As part of looking at BCNU’s purpose, Pilz said members will look at the union’s vision, mission and values. Based on previously conducted surveys of members, she observed that respondents described the union’s vision as being the champion for union members, the professional voice of nursing and the leading advocate for publicly funded health care.
As members described, the BCNU’s mission is to protect and advance the health, safety, and well-being of BCNU members, the nursing profession and our communities. Members have also described BCNU’s values as collectivity, democracy, equality, excellence, integrity, social justice and solidarity.
Understanding the purposes that motivate BCNU members will “help improve decision-making, drive success and allow BCNU to achieve its purpose,” said Pilz.
LEADERSHIP, ADVOCACY AND TEAMWORK IN NURSING
On the evening of the first day, Gear hosted a panel with Amie Archibald-Varley and Sara Fung, co-hosts of the Gritty Nurse podcast and co-authors of The Wisdom of Nurses: Stories of Grit from the Frontlines and Dr. Brian Goldman, an ER physician in Toronto. Dr. Goldman is the host of CBC Radio’s White Coat Black Art on CBC Radio One and the CBC podcast The Dose. He is also the author of The Power of Kindness: How We Can All Work Better Together.
The panel began with Archibald-Varley and Fung regaling how they, as coworkers, decided to start the podcast to share stories from nursing that were not being listened to in the workplace.
“Through the podcast, we have learned how to be good leaders and build psychologically safe workplaces,” said Fung.
“There’s so much wisdom in our voices as nurses and perspectives that we bring because we have a unique lens,” said Archibald-Varley. “We asked ourselves: how do we become the change we want to see, and how do we make a difference.”
Using results of polling they had conducted with nurses, Archibald-Varley and Fung then noted how many nurses lack on-the-job leadership training. This observation inspired them to promote leadership
education, create safe spaces and address bullying.
“Together, we are a team that supports the strongest nursing union in the world”
- BCNU President Adriane Gear
“No one quits nursing,” said Archibald-Varley, “They tend to quit their employers. They quit their bosses.”
The podcasters also talked about how nurses can spark change in nursing at every scale, starting with their everyday interactions at work.
“If we can advocate for patients, we can advocate for ourselves,” said Fung. “I never saw myself as an advocate until several years ago. You don’t have to be a certain personality type to be an advocate. Advocacy and activism are not bad words. They are simply ways that we can initiate change.”
Archibald-Varley also reminded nurses to look at their own actions.
“Take that time to reflect. Think about some of the things that have gone on during a shift or during a day or week,” she said. A revolution in nursing will be in terms of how we treat each one another in our profession.”
Dr Brian Goldman then shared his thoughts about leadership and collaboration, emphasizing how embracing teamwork and kindness |can empower nurses and help them deal with challenges like stress, burnout, unsafe nurse-to-patient ratios and violence.
He gave some tips on dealing with personal stress, including practising mindfulness, self-forgiveness, self-compassion and turning off social media.
“You can take care of yourself before you take care of other people,” said Goldman.
Goldman said after taking care of oneself, the next step is to become a kinder, more empathetic leader, he added.
“The more complex the work you do, the more you need a team,” said Goldman. “You feel safe making suggestions. Comments are heard, and action can be taken. Everyone volunteers to help.”
MEETING YOUR LEADERSHIP TEAM
After the morning presentation, BCNU Vice President Tristan Newby introduced BCNU’s leadership team: President Adriane Gear, Interim CEO Jim Gould, Provincial Treasurer Sharon Sponton, Interim Executive Councillor for Occupational Health and Safety and Mental Health Denise Waurynchuk, Interim Executive Councillor for Pensions and Seniors Health Meghan Friesen and Newby himself.
Each member of the team answered a range of questions from members in the room and provided an update on their work and priorities, including truth and reconciliation, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), labour relations, OHS and mental health, retention and campaigners, internal human resources, bargaining and benefits, reimagining BCNU, and minimum nurse-to-patient ratios.
“You have heard from the leadership team about the union’s priorities and how we’re going to move forward,” said Gear. “You have learned to focus on self-reflection, appreciate your teams, and commit to inclusion and allyship. Together, we are a team that supports the strongest nursing union in the world,” said Gear. •
UPDATE (Summer 2024)