Every Moment Counts

Practical ways to increase trust, communication & connection with consumers in acute settings, while balancing the demands of a busy ward environment.

Research shows that consumers consistently identify connection, communication and trust as fundamental to positive experiences in acute care settings. But busy ward environments can make it hard for clinicians to find time to make meaningful connections with consumers.

What will participants learn in this one day workshop?

Practical ways to connect with consumers in acute settings, while managing the demands of a busy work environment. ‘Every Moment Counts’ draws upon several approaches to facilitating meaningful connections, and covers:

  1. How to identify barriers to connection in acute settings, from the viewpoint of both consumers and mental health workers
  2. How to apply the principles of connection using ‘world view’ and ‘making meaning’ maps
  3. The ways in which compassionate-centred nursing enables connection
  4. Strategies for minimising compassion fatigue
  5. Discuss and reflect upon unusual beliefs and understanding voices, and ways to connect with individuals who have different belief systems
  6. Identify coping strategies for consumers to increase their control with regard to unusual beliefs and hearing voices

Who will benefit from this workshop?

Making ‘Every Moment Count’ is relevant to all mental health workers in all mental health settings.

How do I enrol in this one-day workshop?

Currently, the CPN can only accept enrolments from Nurse Education teams within Victorian area mental health services. If you are an individual or a group of practitioners, contact your Education team to express your interest. Services are entitled to a minimum of two CPN workshops per year at no cost, with a minimum of 15 participants each.

Further reading about the role of trust, communication & connection in acute settings

Russo, J., & Rose, D. (2013). But what if nobody’s going to sit down and have a real conversation with you? Service user/survivor perspectives on human rights, Journal of Public Mental Health 12(4) doi: 10.1108/JPMH-05-2013-0030

Gilburt, H., Rose, D. & Slade, M. (2008). The importance of relationships in mental health care: A qualitative study of service users' experiences of psychiatric hospital admission in the UK, BMC Health Services Research, 8, 92-104.

Knight, T. (2009). Beyond Belief: Alternative ways to working with delusions, obsessions and unusual experiences, Peter Lehmann Publishing, Berlin, Germany, available online at www.peter-lehmann-publishing.com/beyond-belief.htm