Team 6 - Conflict in the Hospital

Description

The hospital is experiencing a surge of patients. A charge nurse who is new to the unit receives instructions from the patient flow coordinator to find a bed and facilitate discharge of the most stable patient who is medically cleared. The nurse requires an available bed to bring a new patient in, but one is not yet available. One of the patients is ready to be discharged, but requires space in a long term care (LTC) facility because they aren't able to care for themselves. The social worker (SW) meets with the patient to discuss his needs. Since a suitable spot in LTC is not yet available, a conflict occurs between the nurse and the SW. The nurse is not aware of the process and the time it takes to secure a spot in LTC, so they begin arguing. The nurse claims it is the SW's responsibility to find a place for the patient while the SW says it takes time to find such accommodation, especially in LTC. Even though their anger shouldn't be expressed towards each other, they are both tired from a long day and start blaming one other. The problem is a lack of available resources (e.g., beds). They both seem to be fighting for what they view as "best” for the situation rather than hearing the each other's perspective. A health care eLearning specialist hears the arguing and acts as a mediator to help resolve the conflict.