Employee Survey: Anonymous?

I'm pretty sure that everyone working at a hospital in the USA, is presented on a yearly basis, the Employee Survey. At our system, we are told, that our responses are completely anonymous. Well, I don't believe that for a minute, nor do I care. Heck, I'm probably going to retire in a year, so what does it matter? Still, I thought I might share with you the final Q&A, 3 top questions (and my responses), at the end of the survey.

Please provide one suggestion on how to improve the Employee Experience here at XYZ Health.

Management in some Nursing areas, talk DAILY about budget, HPPD hours, and so on, to the staff nurses, as if those nurses have some influence over the patient census and procedural scheduling. We don't have any influence, on how many patients come on any single day, and thus, all of this kind of talk is petty and short-sighted. The nurse at the bedside, is working as hard and fast as possible, so, instead of being reprimanded by managers, those bedside nurses should be praised and thanked every single day for their diligence and hard work.


What do you like best about your Employee Experience at XYZ Health?

The opportunity to work with other highly competent and trusted work companions.


What is one thing XYZ Health could do to create a more inclusive culture?

Sure, it's great that our color and branding slogan, tells the world that we care about a Load of Kindness; heck, it's brilliant. After all, that's what healthcare workers the world over, have always been doing; putting others needs ahead of their own. So face it, this is not a new idea. Let's have XYZ cut the branding budget in half, and spend that other half exclusively and inclusively, inside of these hospitals in a direct way, that impacts employees. This will make workers happy; they will tell their friends to come work at XYZ and truly encourage people in the community, to seek medical care at our hospitals.......much more effectively than tv commercials about whales, lame deer, drowning dogs, and elderly women crossing the road.

The Old Guard

If you've worked anywhere, and found some way to survive your less-than-perfect work place, bravo to you. Why? Because we're all human and no job is perfect. We all have to put up with all kinds of convoluted nonsense in healthcare, and usually somewhere in your career, you will have worked at the best place for you.

And then, there is the "new" employee, with some kind of stupid crusader attitude. They come to the job, and think the place is super dysfunctional (and it might very well be), and figure all it needs is their insight, and "how we did it back home" and they begin to raise complaints, regarding all the stuff that the rest of us know, that are almost impossible to change. The outcome is very predictable......our place of work, spits out that irritating rotten little bit of noise (sooner than later).
The betting pool is warming up on how long that will take...............

Newly hired employees
Arriving at deeply entrenched places,
May try to change the old guard
Make big statements and hard faces,
While ruffling a lot of feathers
And raising up dander,
Eventually this mess
Will lift the hackles of the Commander.

With your prodding and complaining
How this place of work is busted,
Your turmoil is so toxic
That you can't be trusted,
Thus, the outcome is usually
New employee will implode,
Sonny, you can't beat the system
Get the message? Hit the road!