attention in a clear,
concise manner; state
the problem; propose
a solution; and wait
for the decision maker
to process the infor-
mation and then make
a decision. In order for
this approach to truly
do the job, staff must
"close the loop" by
performing each step fully and effectively. But first, employees need
to have the courage to speak up.
"Leadership can be taught, enhanced and improved," he says.
"Communication can be taught, enhanced and improved. Courage
comes from within. However, the first 2 are absolutely critical to have
the third one actually work. You can have courage to be the lone
voice in the woods, but it doesn't mean you'll be listened to. You can't
teach courage, but you can enhance the possibility that courage will
be replicated by not slapping it down."
Whether staff members are right or wrong about their particular
concerns, they need to feel that not only do they have a responsibility
to speak up but also that they can do so safely, without fear of
reprisal.
"All it takes is one time of someone getting slapped down for speak-
ing up," says Mr. Byrum. "If that happens, anyone who witnessed it or
even heard about it is going to think: I'm not going to risk getting
verbally cuffed."
J U N E 2 0 1 7 • O U T PA T I E N TS U R G E R Y. N E T • 6 7
• COMMON VALOR Imbuing every member of the surgical team with the courage to speak up may help to avoid
situations that can hurt patient outcomes.
David
C.
Ring,
MD,
PhD
