In the Spotlight
Kristin Templeton
Clinical Resource Nurse, Grace Hospital
What led you to become a clinical resource nurse, and what inspires you about the role?
I worked as a full-time registered nurse HSC Adult Emergency from 2009 until 2013, and continue to enjoy working there on a casual basis. In 2013 I was hired on at the Grace Hospital Emergency. This was closer to my home and in the community where I grew up which makes me feel a little "closer to home" in a sense. 2015 brought me to the new role of Clinical Resource Nurse, which is what I strived for as I am passionate about making a change, building my scope of practice, challenging my strengths and weaknesses, and most of all being an integral part of a rapidly evolving Winnipeg Emergency Department.
We're in the midst of a lot of change. How do you help your colleagues navigate and manage all that comes with it?
This is definitely a challenging time for all healthcare providers. I strive to be a calm, positive team player and do my best to encourage and assist whenever possible. Just taking each shift hour by hour, patient by patient is what we are learning to do, again, as a team. Key word being TEAM.
Sure, I try to help my colleagues navigate and manage, but I have to stress that THEY are often helping me and other CRNs to manage and navigate. The manager/director, nurses, HCAs, clerks, OTs, PTs, social workers, home care workers, housekeeping staff, doctors, etc. are the ones who keep this department going. I am there as a resource but they are the ones who truly make this place tick, and they truly deserve the utmost respect and kudos.
The term "standardized work" might sound like we're taking a cookie-cutter approach to patient care. Can we both apply standard care and treat the patient as an individual?
Indeed we can. Standardized work can be molded different ways for each patient while maintaining the main framework. This is done on a daily basis, and allows our staff to provide care with empathy and compassion while maintaining consistency throughout the system.
What does excellence mean to you in your work?
Excellence means being able to walk out of the hospital with my team members, my fellow staff members, managers and directors on a daily basis, knowing we did the best we could do, providing the best possible care and knowing that we are together in this. We are all working under high-stress, fast-paced conditions and always try to come out with a "high five", a "good job" and an encouraging smile.
What does a typical day look like for you?
A typical day starts with the team huddle where we review our day, delegating staffing assignments and reviewing any news from our ED manager & director. Then I take report from the previous CRN in charge for each patient in the department and the shift begins: ensuring patients' dispositions are initiated and expedited, maintaining patient flow throughout the department (moving patients, communicating with other specialties like PT/OT/SW/HC in regards to care plans, communicating and alerting ER Physician when patient's labs/diagnostics are done and need to be reassessed and expediting and accommodating admissions and discharges with the help of EDIS & Oculys, etc.), making treatment spaces for incoming patients and remaining an available resource for our staff in terms of policies/protocols/procedures. Also, continuous communication with our ED manager and directors is a daily occurrence. In addition, being available for all staff members (HCAs, clerks, nurses, doctors, and other specialties) is important to assist with questions, concerns and patient care.
Your role is demanding in every way. How do you maintain your physical and emotional health while so much is going on at home and at work?
The hug and smiles I get from my family when I come from work make everything worth it, lessen the stress and allow me to relax and laugh a little. Coffee indeed helps in all situations! And making a point to enjoy every moment in life outside of work is key for me . . . time spent with my husband and children makes everything THAT much better.
Who are your mentors?
A few nurses who I have known since my first few years as a nurse were and still are my mentors. They are also now CRNs throughout the WRHA. I admire their knowledge, efficiency, proactivity and appreciation of life and still do to this day. They have taught me to take pride in my work, speak up, not be distracted or discouraged by bumps in the road (take them as challenges) and they have also taught me how to enjoy and appreciate life. The staff that manage our ER here at Grace also are admirable. Always remaining visible and available for us, helping us on a daily basis in the department and providing encouraging words through these challenging times
What gets you up in the morning and keeps you coming back (besides early rising kids!)
Knowing that this is what I have strived for, a nursing career that I've wanted since I can remember. That perhaps I can possibly make a notable difference in someone's life, among our team and in our vast healthcare system.
Despite the high stress that the team deals with every day, knowing we are making a difference is a satisfying thing. These small differences, as a team, sum up on a larger scale to create SIGNIFICANT impact in our department, in patients' quality of care and in our healthcare system.