Kathleen Bartholomew, RN wants to hear from you. Share your story and win $500.
In Kathleen Bartholomew's acclaimed book The Dauntless Nurse: Communications Confidence Builder, she shares tools and tips on how to communicate assertively and understand workplace culture. This book gives nurses the knowledge and skills needed to confidently address experiences and behaviors that leave them feeling undermined or uncertain.
Now the author is inviting you to share your most powerful dauntless bold conversations for change with other nurses. And have a chance to win $500 for the effort. Examples of dauntless and bold conversations are below.
Please submit all one-page or less entries by June 10, 2023 to kathleenbart@msn.com
Dauntless & Bold Conversation Examples
Conversation #1:
I was frustrated because a co-worker spends the majority of night shift on Facebook and/or knitting
instead of working. Finally I decided to be dauntless…
“Can I talk to you for a minute in private?
I noticed that you have been on Facebook for an hour and a half when we are supposed to be working.
It is frustrating to watch a peer play when everyone else is busy working. It’s not fair, and it’s not
teamwork. Please keep Facebook use to your meals and breaks, and ask us if we need help if you are caught up so that we can all work as a team to provide the best care possible”.
Conversation #2:
I approached the charge nurse and told her that after working 8 hours I still had not had a meal or a
break and she responded, “Well me neither”.
So I waited until the shift was over and asked to speak to her in private and said “When I asked you for a break or time to eat after working 8 hours straight today you responded, “Well me neither”
I understand that you were frustrated and tired, but it is part of your responsibility to ensure that we all
get a break, and if we are not (including yourself), to call the supervisor or manager. We need to count
on you, and it is not okay that we all did not get a break. Can we talk about what we will do next time so
the same thing doesn’t happen again?
Conversation #3
I am a brand new nurse and when I entered the nurses station, I saw another nurse roll her eyes. So I
said, “I noticed that you rolled your eyes when I came into the room. Is there something going on that I
should know about? It’s okay to speak to me directly.
The doctor wasn’t yelling or anything like that. He was just rude. It’s like he always had better things
to do and we were an imposition every time we called.
So I asked to speak to him in private and shared that we felt like more of a burden than a team of
professionals. I asked him if we could have a cup of coffee because as the charge nurse I knew that we
weren’t functioning well. At first he looked at me and said nothing, then he finally said “okay”.
It’s a start not accepting the way things are!