When was the last time you did something fun? Something that is in no way related to your job. Are you happy with your work-life balance? Have you recently had enough time to spend with the people you love? Do you feel this is a conversation we need to have? In my opinion, the answers to these questions provide incontrovertible truths as to why we should. Did you know that negative quality of work is among the top five reasons for massive turn over within the nursing profession Follow this link for more information https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/a68a/55f550c75d14f7d4dca30a1d7b3b7c433940.pdfWork-life balance also referred to as quality of work is defined as a compilation of several aspects that dictates an employee's emotion with respect to work. Some of these aspects include;
- A clearly-stated job description
- Fair and adequate compensation
- Career advancement chances
- Duty discretion
- Occupational health and safety
- Employment security
- Organizational and personal relations
- Work-life stability
Please follow the link to read more on this https://www.hindawi.com/journals/nrp/2017/5181676/
Due to the undergoing brain drain of nurses within Africa, more people are recognizing the need to conduct more research on the above factors as a way of trying to improve on care delivery. However, the conduction and implementation of the recommendations are time-consuming and at times not always taken into consideration. This then calls for us to make personal changes as a way that may attempt to enhance our quality of work. Here are a few suggestions that I recently came across.
1. Consider joining a recognized trade union
A trade union is an organization made up of members who are workers and their main aims are to protect and advance the interests of its members in the workplace. Most trade unions are independent of any employer but the unions try to develop close working relationships with employers.
Effective unions should aim to
- Negotiate agreements with employers on pay and conditions.
- Discuss major changes to the workplace such as large scale redundancy.
- Discuss members' concerns with employers.
- Accompany members in disciplinary and grievance meetings.
- Provide members with legal and financial advice.
- Provide education facilities and certain consumer benefits such as discounted insurance.
Before joining any trade union ensure that it is recognized by the Ministry of labor and social protection. Secondly. investigate the said union to see if it will meet your needs. Please follow the link for more information https://labour.go.ke/department-of-trade-unions/
2. Obtain indemnity insurance
3. Be proactive
It is rare to find a job that can meet all your needs unless of course, you work for some key organizations such as Microsoft or Google. Having said that, this should not limit us to aspire to enrich ourselves. We should seek opportunities to advance our careers maybe through academic opportunities or taking up more responsibilities by applying for better roles when available. In this way, we give ourselves an opportunity for growth. and with growth then we develop more bargaining power in the workplace.4. Prioritize
At any point in time seek to ensure that your work-life balance does not affect your health. Studies have shown that poor work-life balance may result in work-family conflicts, non-communicable diseases and at times may put patients at risk due to excessive fatigue of the caregiver. To read more on this click here https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/15/9/2038/htm
In conclusion, a lot more can be done within our profession as a way to try to create a positive work-life balance. One way to achieve this is through collaborative interactions among nursing departments and human resource departments primarily through research. In an economy where the majority of young people are unemployed, we should always ensure that we value our work as it helps us meet our daily needs but still ensure we try striking a balance so as not make us lose on having a life outside work for
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