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• Cindy Lewis, MSN, RN

The other day as I was challenged to develop a plan to implement a new practice change, I was contemplating how to approach and address anticipated staff responses to this new change. Honestly, it would seem that the only person who truly welcomes lots of changes is a baby with a full diaper! Seriously though, I knew this would be another challenge. Presenting new practice changes, developing the plan, and implementing and evaluating the change needed to be done and successfully carried out. This raised the question for me, how can I help my staff to accept and deal with change more positively? Because change is inevitable both in our current society, and most certainly within health care, I asked myself what are some best practices we could all incorporate to better accept and thrive in a changing environment?

We all know occasional changes, in work or our personal lives, can be exhilarating and challenging. Past that point, however, rapid, unpredictable change can be simply stressful. There is even an old ancient Chinese curse that states, “May you live in interesting times.”¹ This saying illustrates the difficulty of dealing with change and ambiguity. We may want to embrace or reject the future when it arrives, but either way we should be prepared for some kind of struggle. Well, we certainly do live in interesting times.

In our work lives, health care agendas are a driving force for the changes we are faced with daily. Many of our organizations and even departments have been restructured, merged, divested, or downsized. Staffing issues involving recruitment and retention remain challenging. In addition, during this busy holiday season we may also be challenged in our personal lives.

Even change has seemed to change. At one time we may have experienced and learned how to deal with change, but then more change came and then faster change came. Today, workplace changes seem to have taken on a more linear component, still moving in familiar directions, only faster. This term is being coined “hyperchange.” Hyperchange is only secondarily about speed. It is mostly about novelty and unpredictability. The core solution to moving the change is ensuring people have the attitudes and skills for successful change implementation.²

Workplace hyperchange is now also being recognized for high job stress and low work satisfaction and can be associated with worker disabilities and symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder. Stress-control programs are being developed and offered to ensure four main protective categories: biologic, psychologic, social, and organizational. The programs emphasize preventing fatigue and the buildup of stress hormones through using stress management and coping strategies, enabling workers to reestablish their environments to support change and strengthen team relationships, and encouraging organizations to provide stress-management programs, education, and resources for their workers to improve employee satisfaction.³, ⁴

These programs all seem to address seven main concepts. Below is a summary of a few suggestions that may help you to manage and deal with change and any subsequent stress you may exhibit:

We all know change is occurring at an ever-increasing rate. This presents particular challenges to each of us, no matter what role we have in the change. It is important that we each explore our personal response to change and recognize how we can lead and impact change within our organizations. This will require that we also identify the health care challenges we will be facing in the new century. It is imperative that we develop and grow the technical skills, interpersonal communication skills, and leadership styles needed to master these future challenges. To master this era of hyperchange, continue to focus on your strengths, skills, and self-help techniques to move forward.

I encourage you all to incorporate the seven steps listed above both in your personal and professional lives. These steps can help you to limit the negative effects of change and stress. This Journal issue provides you with articles focusing on physiologic and psychologic effects of vascular problems and discusses research concepts and methods. As you relax and read this issue, I hope you find the articles challenging and interesting.

I hope they stimulate new ideas and practice changes that you can implement. Share with us what your challenges are. Share with us your new practice changes. Share with us how you are dealing with the changes in your environments. I hope to hear from you soon!

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References 

1. Pratchet T . Interesting times . New York: Harper Collins Publishers; 1994;
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2. Dickinson D . Positive trends in learning (meeting the needs of a rapidly changing world) . Seattle (WA): New Horizons for Learning, New Horizons for Learning World Wide Web; 1994;
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3. Kelly E . Powerful times. Rising to the challenge of an uncertain world . New York: Wharton School Publishing; 2005;
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4. Mason J . Guide to stress reduction . Berkeley (CA): Celestial Arts; 2001;
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