Managing Change

Submitted by: Cathy M. Cinko, LCSW

Change is one mainstay in our lives today. Change affects us in our home lives, but also in our workplace. Change is all around us. Change is not only persistent, but it is also consistent. Do we want to embrace change or resist change? Embracing change is an adaptable quality. Resisting change is maladaptive. Resisting change could be perceived by others as being rigid and inflexible. Embracing change, on the other hand, could show others that we are flexible and a team player.

Some people view change positively. This change is viewed as a learning opportunity or growing potential. Others may view change negatively. Change is perceived as something to fear or avoid. Fearing or avoiding change will only prolong the inevitable. If change is feared then sometimes it is important to develop coping skills to assist an individual with embracing the changes. Coping can be defined as behavioral and cognitive strategies to deal with experiences that are perceived as negative.

Coping with change means that you take charge and be a part of the change solution, including managing your feelings. Ask yourself if this change is going to affect you in a positive or negative way. People who have a positive outlook find it easier to engage in the change process. Use positive thinking techniques like positive affirmation statements while visualizing a good outcome. Ask yourself questions: Is this change likely to ease your work load or enhance your skills?

If the change is a perceived threat then knowledge can translate to power and control. Be proactive, and assertively ask for news updates. Being proactive is an important action step to help navigate the changes. The famous self-help book, Who Moved my Cheese, by Spencer Johnson and Kenneth Blanchard, is an amazing resource for individuals that struggle with change at work and at home.

Embrace change by becoming a change-agent! Remember: change is inevitable!

Cathy M. Cinko, LCSW, is a therapist with the Employee Assistance Program for the Franciscan Alliance hospitals in Northern Indiana.

Volunteers receive Most Valuable Team award

Franciscan Physicians Hospital congratulates its volunteers as the winners of this quarter’s MVT (Most Valuable Team) award.

This award is a Service Excellence initiative to honor those who demonstrate outstanding team services. The award is determined by previous winners; last quarter, the Outpatient Surgery Team won the award and nominated the volunteers this quarter. The winners have their picture taken and are on display in a large award board in the main lobby.

From assisting patients in the hallways to answering phones, guiding family members to their loved ones in pre-op and recovery, and helping with hospitality, there is nothing that the FPH volunteers cannot do to brighten someone’s day and add a valuable piece to our health care puzzle. Their generous dedication to helping others Makes a Difference!

THANK YOU, Volunteers, for your outstanding service here at Franciscan Physicians Hospital and for winning the MVT Award.

To learn more about volunteer opportunities with Franciscan Physicians Hospital and Franciscan Alliance, visit FranciscanAlliance.org/volunteer.

National Healthcare Decisions Day - Understanding Advance Directives

There may come a time when you or a family member is seriously injured or gravely ill. In the midst of shock and grief, you may be asked to make hard medical decisions. It is important for you to learn about Advance Directives, types and intensity of medical care, and to discuss the kind of treatment you feel comfortable with before you make those difficult decisions.

April 16 is National Healthcare Decisions Day…a time to bring awareness to the importance of advance care planning and communicating and documenting your healthcare decisions.

Understanding Advance Directives

Advance care directives allow patients to provide instructions about their preferences regarding the care they would like to receive if they develop an illness or a life-threatening injury and are unable to express their preferences. Advance care directives can also designate someone the patient trusts to make decisions about medical care if the patient becomes unable to make (or communicate) these decisions. This is called designating "power of attorney (for health care)."

Advance care directives can reduce:

• Personal worry
• Feelings of helplessness and guilt by family members
• Futile, costly, specialized interventions that a patient may not want
• Overall health care costs
• Legal concerns for everyone involved

Example of Advance Directives

• Verbal instructions. These are any decisions regarding care that are communicated verbally by an individual to health care providers or family members.
• Organ donation. This may be accomplished by completing an organ donation card and carrying it in your wallet. A second card may be placed with important papers (such as a living will, insurance papers, and so on).
• Living will. This is a written, legal document that conveys the wishes of a person in the event of serious illness. This document can speak for a patient who is unable to communicate. A living will may indicate specific care or treatment the person does or does not want performed under specific circumstances. A living will is not to be confused with a last will and testament that distributes assets after a person's death.
• Special medical power of attorney. A legal document that allows an individual to appoint someone else (proxy) to make medical or health care decisions, in the event the individual becomes unable to make or communicate such decisions personally.
• DNR (do not resuscitate) order. This states that CPR is not to be performed if your breathing stops or your heart stops beating. The order may be written by the person's doctor after discussing the issue with the person (if possible), the proxy, or family.

Recommendations

• In the event you choose to create a living will or special medical power of attorney, know specific state laws that may apply. Write the document to be consistent with your state's laws.
• If you have a living will or special medical power of attorney, provide copies for your family members and health care providers. Carry a copy with you in a wallet, glove compartment of a car, or similar location. If you have a planned admission to a hospital, take copies for the hospital to include in your medical chart and tell all medical personnel involved with your case about the documents.
• Consider the possibilities of the future, and plan ahead. Studies have shown that although the majority of people believe having some form of advance directive is a good idea, most people have not actually developed advance directives for themselves. Many people state that they want their families to make health care decisions. However, less than half of these people have ever discussed the issue and their specific desires with family members.
• These decisions can be changed at any time. However, if a living will is changed, everyone involved -- including family or proxies and all healthcare providers -- must be informed and new copies of instructions made and distributed.

The process of creating advance care directives may be difficult. It requires you to think about your priorities regarding quality of life and your death. Treatment options, and their possible influence on your quality of life, need to be fully understood and considered. Know the potential implications of choosing or refusing specific forms of care.

Discuss your wishes regarding advance care directives with your health care providers, family members, and friends. Review your wishes from time to time to remind everyone.

Source: A.D.A.M. Multimedia Encyclopedia

Pope’s decree of miracle paves way for beatification of Mother Maria Theresia Bonzel

On Wednesday, March 27, 2013, Pope Francis approved his first decrees from the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. Among them was a ‘Decree of Miracle’ acknowledging a miracle attributed to the intercession of the Venerable Servant of God, Mother Maria Theresia Bonzel, foundress of the Sisters of St. Francis of Perpetual Adoration.

This miraculous cure of a young boy from Colorado Springs, Colo. – who is now a young adult -- paves the way towards her beatification, which is scheduled to take place on Nov. 10, 2013, in Paderborn, Germany.

Mother Maria Theresia, was born on Sept. 17, 1830, in Olpe, Germany. She sought to combine the contemplative and active religious life through an unfailing commitment to Perpetual Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and the works of mercy in the spirit of St. Francis of Assisi. Mother Maria Theresia died on Feb.6, 1905.

About the Sisters of St. Francis of Perpetual Adoration:
The Sisters of St. Francis of Perpetual Adoration continue to serve in education, health care, and other ecclesial ministries in Germany, the United States, the Philippines, and Brazil. In doing so, they follow in the footsteps of Jesus who spent His public life praying, teaching, healing and ministering to others. The Provincial House of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Province is located in Mishawaka, Ind. These Sisters serve in the Archdioceses of Chicago and Indianapolis, and the Dioceses of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Lafayette-in-Indiana, and Gary. The Sisters rejoice that this gift comes during their celebration of the 150th Jubilee of the Congregation and the Year of Faith. To learn more, go to http://www.ssfpa.org.