When a little “thank you” goes a long way
Published: Sat February 20, 2010
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA">Thank you. Good job. Well done. Keep up the
good work.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA">Those are simple words and phrases right?
So why do we crave them so much? What is in the human psyche that makes us want
to hear these words? I believe that most paramedics are similar to myself in
that they don't require hearing any of these words in order to function at a
high level.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA">However, when someone does say something
about what a good job we did out there, or that we saved a friend or relative's
life and we could never be repaid for what we did, it becomes our motivation
for us for the coming weeks, months or maybe even years following. Why is that?
It's because a person's physical and psychological being are intertwined and
what affects one side will ultimately affect the other. For example, if you
break a leg and are off work for two months, what happens? You cannot only not
go to work, but you can't play with your children, go to the gym and work out
or even drive a vehicle for that matter. These events, at least initially will
create a path of thinking that will include denial, anger and self pity that
will ultimately lead to falling into a state of depression. In order to get out
of that state of depression the pain has to heal: the pain of the fracture; the
pain of being off work and not providing for your family; and the pain of being
the patient instead of the healer. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA">What paramedics do</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA">A phrase everyone commonly hears is "the
doctor makes the worst patient." Well, this applies to paramedics as well. No
question about it. We are so used to being the ones who rescue others in need
that we sometimes fail to recognize when we are in need of rescuing. We can be
so focused on others that we lose sight of our own self and where we stand in
life. It's only natural really. How can a person look inward when they are
always looking outward? This just can't be done, at least not at the same time.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA">So what do paramedics do in order to
maintain a balance between a healthy physical being and a healthy psychological
being? The physical side of things is an easy one to explore. It's been well
documented how regular physical activity can create a strong body, increase
your energy level and improve job performance. The list of overall benefits of
having regular physical activity in your life is as long as the list of systems
within the body. It's longer actually, when considering the individual lists of
benefits you could put under each system. What people do to take care of their
psychological being can be just as diverse. Activities can range from positive
ones, such as meditation, reading, writing or taking a course at your local
college to the negative, such as drinking, substance abuse or anything else
that numbs the mind and senses. We survive shift after shift by using our wits,
intuition, memory recall and observation skills. Any activity that takes away from
these things can be considered a negative activity. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA">Can management help?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA">So what can management do to help? The
problem for them is this: management is not there when bad things happen on
scene. They are not the ones watching your back on scene when you're in the
middle of a domestic dispute. They might be there when there is a large MVC on
a major highway requiring an hour of extrication, but on a day-to-day basis
they have other obligations and responsibilities. So the only person who sees
how well you take care of your patients on a day-to-day basis is your partner.
What does management see? They see your paperwork. That's really all they have
to go on in making judgements about how well you are treating your patients. So
to expect much from your management team regarding recognition of a job well
done would be a stretch in my estimation. However, here are a couple of things
I've heard of certain services doing in order to recognize some of their
employees.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA">One thing that paramedics are is very goal
oriented. Let's get the oxygen on, get the IV started, get the backboard straps
on, let's go, let's go, let's go. How about setting up a rewards program that
sets out clear goals for paramedics to try to achieve? For example, some type
of token or gift certificate for not having to do a written response for a
problem with one of the ACRs over a certain period of time? Why not offer a
chance to do some extra training of the paramedics' own choice and have the
service pay for it? Or perhaps consider a raise in pay (thought I'd throw that
out there - I can hear the laughter from here). Anyway, you get the idea. It
doesn't have to be a big thing at all. How about once a year setting up a
one-on-one meeting with the staff and operations manager or supervisor to provide
a chance to talk about what's on their minds? This could go a long way toward
making the paramedic feel like his voice and ideas are being heard and actually
written down somewhere. These types of ideas are intended for those services
that don't currently have anything like this in place. I am certainly not privy
to what goes on in services everywhere across this country, so to those
services who do have a program that recognizes paramedic achievement I say
"good on you."</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA">Let's work together<span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-CA">In many EMS services, paramedics take time
out from their personal lives to recognize each other. The local associations
have awards nights and the awards that are handed out are given to paramedics
who have been nominated for certain awards by other paramedics. Although in my
book, peer recognition may be one of the highest honours a person can receive,
it should not always be left to the workers to pat each other on the back.
Management teams everywhere could easily step up to the plate and do more than
just give credit where credit is due. It's quite easy to hand out awards for
bravery down at city hall to two paramedics who ran into a burning building and
pulled out a mother and child. How about recognizing the day-to-day,
shift-to-shift successes of all of the outstanding paramedics that are out
there in this country and indeed around the world? A little "thank you" could
go a long way. </span></p>
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