The ABC’s of Culture Change in Long Term Care

Karl Samuelson MBA

A is for

Awaken.Your vision will become clear only when you look into your heart ... Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens.

- Carl Jung

B is forBeauty.

To me, fair friend, you never can be old. For as you were when first your eye I eyed. Such seems your beauty still.

- William Shakespeare

C is for

Community.Real leaders do not fly ten thousand miles above their organization. Many of them are quiet managers whose inspiring presence gives rise to the commitment of those people working for their organization… But we would be wrong to depend solely on these individuals in order to advance our organizations and societies. We need to recognize the importance of community-ship.

- Henry Mintzberg

D is for

Dignity.

Dignity must be the fundamental value on which a long term care system is built and maintained… period. 품위

وقارдостоинство

E is for

Engagement.

High levels of employee engagement lead to

better outcomes. Where does it start? Towers Perrin conducted the largest Global Workforce Study of its kind in 2008 and found that the top driver of engagement was senior management demonstrating a sincere interest in employee well-being.

F is for

Family.

The family is the nucleus of civilization.

- Will Durant

G is for

Government.

Government must be actively, not passively, supportive of culture change in long term care.

H is for

Harmony.

There must be harmony between the mission statement and reality.

I is forIntegrity.Are you who you say you are? Integrity is achieved when your residents, staff, and stakeholders believe that you are true to your promises and deliver on your commitments.

The supreme quality for leadership is unquestionably integrity. Without it, no real success is possible, no matter whether it is on a section gang, a football field, in an army, or in an office.

- Dwight D. Eisenhower

J is for

Job satisfaction.

Job satisfaction, caring, and productivity are inevitably linked in long term care.

K is for

Kindness. Kindness is not trite. It is essential. While wages and benefits might consume 80% of an operating budget, kindness is free. Yet it yields colossal returns.

Kindness is a language we can all understand.Even the blind can see it. And the deaf can hear it.

- Mother Theresa

L is for

LeadershipEach person can be a leader and drive positive change no matter where your position sits on the organizational chart. Culture change requires leadership by all.

Ductus exemplo Leadership by example

M is for

Mental attitude.

Success or failure is caused more by mental attitude than by mental capacity.

- Sir Walter Scott

N is for

Nature.What all great gardens have in common are their ability to pull the sensitive viewer out of him or herself and into the garden, so completely that the separate self-sense disappears entirely, and at least for a brief moment one is ushered into a nondual and timeless awareness. A great garden, in other words, is mystical no matter what its actual content.- Ken Wilber

O is for

Opportunity.Your regrets won’t be what you did, but what you didn't do. Don’t delay. Seize the opportunities provided through culture change and behold the majesty around you.

P is forPathway.Individuals have unique values, history, and personalities. Likewise, each long-term care home has its own story. So, carve your own pathway to culture change.

Q is forQuality of Life.

12 of the top 15 drivers of resident satisfaction are Quality of Life factors –courtesy, empathy, compassion, helpfulness, a sense of purpose and connection to one’s environment.

R is for

Respect.Demonstrate respect

for employees by listening to them and never ridiculing their ideas and suggestions.

S is for

Spiritual Care. Spiritual care must not be overlooked in the midst of other competing priorities. Spiritual care is person-centered and makes no judgments about the individual’s beliefs, needs, or lifestyle orientation.

T is for

Transformation.Transformation is required to ensure that the provision of care and service within an holistic setting is the only acceptable norm.

U is for

Understanding.

It is critical to understand that

long term care is intensely personal and culture change will be seen as sheer rhetoric unless it is accompanied by behaviour that leads to real improvement.

V is for

Vision.Have the vision to align the whole organization toward a better future. Open the door to culture change and move from darkness into light.

W is for

Wisdom.Never hire or promote in your own image. It is foolish to replicate your strength and idiotic to replicate your weakness. It is essential to employ, trust, and reward those whose perspective, ability, and judgment are radically different from yours. It is also rare, for it requires uncommon humility, tolerance, and wisdom.

- Dee Hock (Founder of Visa)

X is forXenolithsXenoliths are rock fragments embedded inside another rock. And so it is with culture change – respect, tolerance and understanding must become embedded into the fabric of every long term care home.

Y is for

Yourself.People may criticize your ideas or make you the target of their malice. But they cannot remove the purity of your intentions and the generosity of your spirit. No person can debase you but yourself.

You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.

- Gautama Buddha

Z is for

Zeit.

Zeit is the German word for time. You find time to do what you love. We must enable residents and staff to find the time to do what they love.

Contact Information:Karl Samuelsonksamuels@rogers.com

Karl Samuelson MBAHealthcare Leader, Researcher, Writer, and

Consultant