The activities of the Partnership Grant "Transforming Nurses' Work Environments Through a Strengths-Based Leadership and Management Training Program" continue, even as we have suspended on-site research activities and moved to working from home to slow the spread of COVID-19. We offer an update on the project鈥檚 progress, as we adjust our timelines and work within the new constraints created by COVID-19.
Executive Committee Update
Our project's Executive Committee continues to virtually meet weekly to strategize, set priorities, and review the latest directives from funding agencies and 捆绑SM社区. We are in the process of both short- and long-term strategic planning to temporarily re-shift our priorities, revise our timeline, and consider alternative ways of meeting the study鈥檚 objectives.
Evaluation Committee Update
The Evaluation Committee has continued designing the SBNH Leadership (SBNH-L) Program鈥檚 evaluation protocol. They have collaborated with the Integrated SBNH-L Training Program Committee to ensure that the evaluation and the SBNH-L Training program align. They have also connected with our partners at the Centre for Oral History and Digital Storytelling (COHDS) at Concordia University to discuss how to evaluate the impact of story-sharing, a component of the SBNH-L program.
The evaluation will use a mixed-methods design to capture, both quantitively and qualitatively, outcomes of the SBNH-L Training program on participants of the program and the staff whom they lead. The committee has focused on selecting standardized instruments to measure core concepts, developing new instruments, and developing an ethnographic approach to describe and explain the program鈥檚 impact.
SBNH-L Integrated Training Program Committee Update
The Training Program Committee continues to meet frequently to further refine the SBNH-L Program鈥檚 three components (story-sharing, modules, and mentorship) and prepare for implementation once the healthcare system reopens to research activities.
They have developed an SBNH-L definition, have reviewed the pilot program鈥檚 modules in light of this definition and the program鈥檚 objectives, and have undertaken to revise the SBNH-L curriculum. They have committed to delivering the program using an active learning pedagogical approach.
They are now in the process of operationalizing an additional sub-committee whose mandate is to explore ways to deliver the SBNH-L program remotely.
The SBNH-L Mentorship Program has become a key area of focus this spring: establishing the overview, objectives, and approach, as well as the program鈥檚 structure and support materials.
From November to February, the committee focused on preparing the study team and sites for the implementation of our story-sharing activities, which were scheduled to take place in spring-summer 2020. However, in March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic required us to put these activities on hold. Over the coming months, the Executive & Training Program Committees will engage in discussions on how to move this component forward and adapt to constraints.
Knowledge Mobilization Committee Update
In February, the Knowledge Mobilization Committee met and highlighted the need to incorporate ongoing knowledge translation activities into their plan, such as the building and strengthening of the partnership and preparation of each site.
In February, our website went live, providing a platform to both develop and engage communities of practice and to disseminate information on SBNH, publications, stories, and activities arising from the study.
In early March a group of 10 SBNH champions presented a symposium at the 5th Commonwealth Nurses and Midwives Conference in London, UK. It was enthusiastically received by nurses from around the world. You can read more about the event here聽and download the symposium presentation as a PDF here.
IP, Agreement, and Ethics Committee Update
The completed Partnership Agreement was signed by all parties in January. Ethics protocols have been submitted to our story-sharing sites: St. Mary鈥檚 Hospital and SickKids. However, all approvals are on hold during the pandemic.
We are indeed living through such uncertain and unprecedented times. Now more than ever, SBNH is relevant as we discover, mobilize, and capitalize on our own as well as each other鈥檚 strengths, including those of our patients, as we navigate this terrible virus. Every day we are awed by nurses whose courage, commitment, and compassion send messages of hope, health, and healing from the frontlines. Behind each of these heroes is an army of leaders, fellow colleagues, and essential workers, each one lending their talents and expertise. Never before has the phrase 鈥渟tronger together鈥� taken on such significance and new meaning.
Wishing you all health, peace, and the support of your community (from a distance) during this unprecedented time.