Balancing between multiple tasks can be challenging as humans are not designed to do lots of things at the same time because the quality of work will suffer. To serve and bring only the best quality of work, we must focus – one thing at the same time. This principle is the same in the Healthcare setting as well, more importantly in the Retirement Home field. Healthcare Professionals in Retirement Homes cater to lots of elderly patients. Each of them needs quality care and attention as they are dependent on the strengths of these Healthcare Workers: from medication, mobility, food preparation & consumption, to cleanliness, and many more. This is why can say that the Retirement Homes sector in Healthcare is definitely vital.
In the case of maintaining professionalism and compassion in the Retirement Homes setting, even though we cannot fully master and perfect these two things at the same time, we can still manage to balance them to make things smooth and seamless. In our latest blog, we will discuss how we, as Healthcare Professionals, balance professionalism and compassion in our work at Retirement Homes. This, in turn, will give the best possible care to our elderly patients and make them happy throughout the rest of their lives in Retirement Homes.
How do we define compassion and professionalism?
First, compassion is a trait that shows qualities like kindness, empathy, and understanding towards your patients. As Healthcare Professionals, we recognize each and everyone’s needs, whether it is physical or emotional, and it is our duty to respond to them enthusiastically, with care, and sensitivity on all occasions.
And for professionalism, this is exhibiting and maintaining boundaries, in accordance with the ethical standards in a professional setting. Professionalism ensures that everything that you do is consistently reliable and competent. In short, you care with respect.
What are the strategies to balance compassion and professionalism?
There are 6 techniques that we will share in this blog to help our Healthcare heroes balance compassion and professionalism in their work in order for them to bring out the best in them in delivering quality care to elderly patients.
- Learning and Training: Education and training are important in balancing these two traits. Knowing how emotional intelligence works while in ethical practices is not possible without proper knowledge and training on a regular basis.
- Effective Communication: Communication skills are always reliable. Collaborating with colleagues, dealing with and handling patients through active listening, clear and respectful discussion helps in making things both for you and your patients.
- Setting Clear Boundaries: Having clear boundaries at the start helps things to be easy and minimizes room for errors. In return, this prevents burnout in Health Workers while maintaining respectfulness and effectiveness at work.
- Self-Care: As the powerhouse in the Retirement Home, you should not neglect yourself proper care. Take care of your physical, emotional, and mental health at all times to be effective and balance compassion and professionalism.
- Having Access to Support Systems: As humans, we are interdependent with each other. Having support systems helps a lot, especially in this setting that demands both physical and emotional strength.
- Application at Work: Practicing the balance of compassion and professionalism at work is always the best. Experience is the best teacher and you will always learn from your mistakes. Remember to not be harsh on yourself if you commit one.
When you are able to manage and balance compassion and professionalism at work, you, your team, and your patients will all benefit from this. First, your elderly patients will always feel respected, prioritized, and happy. This is a really good sign that you are doing your duties efficiently. Keep it up and everyone will be satisfied in the long run. Also, staff-wise, this is more beneficial to all of you as work does not feel like work because everything that you do feels natural. Think of it as if you are just helping and taking care of your parents. They feel loved and taken care of! Lastly, respect and trust will always be present, whether it is from your colleagues or patients, which in turn helps foster a positive environment and is less stressful for everyone.
If you are planning to work in Retirement Homes in the future, learning how to balance compassion and professionalism is crucial. At AG Globe Services, we can help you find your dream career in this setting. Check out our openings and be part of our team of Healthcare heroes. Apply now!