Professionalism in Health Care: A Primer for Career Success by Sherry Makely

From the Publisher

Regardless of job title, every healthcare  worker must understand the importance of professionalism.  Hands-on technical skills remain a high priority in healthcare, but good character, a strong work ethic, sound personal traits, and appropriate behaviors are just as important. This practical book presents these topics in an interactive format and is an essential resource for aspiring healthcare professionals of all kinds. It focuses on the “soft skills” (rather than on the hands-on technical skills) that are needed to perform in a professional, ethical, legal, and competent manner, regardless of one's job function/position. Features to this newly revised 3rd edition include: an Interactive CD-ROM containing videos which exemplify professional and non-professional behavior; expanded content based on “hot topics” such as, patient confidentiality, working in teams, valuing diversity, customer service, using electronic communication, displaying a professional image and evaluating employee performance; and more comprehensive coverage of HIPAA and its effect on health care professionals. Self-study guide for new and current health care workers who could benefit from additional professionalism training.

Product Details

• Table of Contents
• Forewords & Introductions

Table of Contents

Forewords & Introductions

Professionalism in Health Care: A Primer for Career Success is designed for students enrolled in nursing and allied health educational programs. The information presented applies to health careers and employment in all types, sizes, and locations of settings including hospitals, clinics, outpatient facilities, occupational health centers, dental practices, rehabilitation centers, physician practices, surgery centers, home care agencies, mental health facilities, pharmacies, community health centers, nursing homes, transitional and long-term care facilities, satellite imaging and laboratory facilities, public health organizations, urgent care centers, and insurance and billing companies.

This book provides information that is essential to the success of today's health care workers. Hands-on technical skills remain a high priority, but good character, a strong work ethic, and personal and professional traits and behaviors are becoming more important than ever before. Statistics indicate a growing concern with theft, fraud, and behavioral problems in the workplace. Poor attendance, interpersonal conflicts, disregard for quality, and disrespect for authority all too often lead to employees being fired from their jobs. With a growing emphasis on customer service, cultural diversity, and corporate compliance, health care employers increasingly seek workers with strong "soft skills"—people who communicate appropriately; work well on teams; respect and value differences; use limited resources efficiently; and interact effectively with coworkers, patients, and guests.

Regardless of job title ordiscipline, every health care student and worker must understand the importance of professionalism and the need to perform in a professional, ethical, legal, and competent manner. Developing and strengthening professional traits and behaviors has become a major challenge for both health care educators and employers. Professionalism in Health Care: A Primer for Career Success helps meet that challenge. It describes professional standards that apply to all health care workers—the "common ground" that everyone shares in providing the highest quality of health care and service excellence for patients visitors, and guests.

Professionalism in Health Care: A Primer for Career Success discusses the following:

• Which jobs require professionalism
• Definitions and key elements of professionalism
• Why professionalism is important to patients, employers, and health care workers
• Making a commitment to your job (the "big picture" and where your role fits in, work ethic, attendance, accountability, attitude, quality of work, compliance, representing your employer)
• Who you are as a person and what you contribute in the workplace (character, values, reputation, integrity, judgment, trustworthiness, honesty, ethics, morals)
• Working with others (relationships, teamwork, diversity, respect, manners, communication skills, conflict resolution, customer service)
• Personal skills and how they impact success on the job (personal image and appearance, personal habits and grammar, professionalism after hours; managing time, personal finances, and stress; problem-solving and critical-thinking skills; managing change)
• Personal and professional growth and advancement (career planning, personal assessments, basic skills, exploring employment opportunities, resumes, interviewing)
• The practicum experience (what to expect during the practicum, internship, externship, or clinical experience and how to ensure success)

Professionalism in Health Care: A Primer for Career Success includes a free CD-ROM in the back of each copy and an Instructor's Guide that qualified adoptors may request. In addition to chapter readings, the textbook provides a Glossary, Self-Assessments, Individual Next-Step Action Plans, What If? Scenarios, and Text Review Questions. The companion CD-ROM presents a series of scenarios, each demonstrating both professional and unprofessional behaviors. The scenarios feature medical personnel working in a physician practice but the concepts apply to all types of health care workers in a wide variety of settings. Each scenario is presented to demonstrate the incorrect behavior and then the correct behavior required of health care professionals. Opening scenes demonstrate poor professionalism and follow-up scenes demonstrate good professionalism. The narrator identifies each trait or behavior and discusses the role of professionalism in each situation. The scenarios are grouped into five categories that correspond with a chapter in the textbook (Chapters One through Five) and a section in the Instructor's Guide. The CDROM also includes additional learning activities to supplement those listed at the end of each chapter in the textbook. These additional learning activities include Supplemental Text Review Questions, Video Clips and Scenario Analysis Quizzes, and Learning Opportunities linked to each chapter in the textbook. The Self Assessments at the end of each chapter are duplicated on the CD-ROM. When students complete the assessments on the CDROM they receive a tabulation of their results.

Students should read each chapter in the textbook and complete the end-of-chapter learning activities before proceeding on the next chapter. End-of-chapter learning activities include Self-Assessments, Individual Next Step Action Plans, What If? Scenarios, and Text Review Questions. Learning activities also include viewing segments of the CD-ROM and completing the Scenario Analysis Quizzes, Supplemental Text Review Questions, and Learning Opportunities.

The Instructor's Guide describes how to use the textbook and CD-ROM for either an instructor-led classroom-based course or an instructor-facilitated independent study course. General Guidelines provide:

• Description of the structure and content of the Instructor's Guide
• Details for using the Instructor's Guide for a classroom-based course or an independent study course
• Template for a six-chapter, easily modified lesson plan
• Course description and course objectives
• Master plan listing the basic content of all six chapters of the course
• Overview of teaching/learning methods
• Description of evaluation tools and methods for demonstrating mastery
• Guidelines for using the textbook and CD-ROM
• Detailed written assignments for supplemental learning activities and opportunities
• Course materials list

In addition to General Guidelines, the Instructor's Guide also provides the following for each chapter of the classroom-based course:

• Curriculum outline
• Lesson plan
• Objectives
• Discussion topics
• Pre-/post-test with answer key
• Answers to Text, CD-ROM, and Scenario Analysis Quizzes
• Recommended responses to the What If? Scenarios
• Print masters for selected chapter items

In addition to General Guidelines, the Instructor's Guide also provides the following for independent study courses:

• Role and responsibilities of the student
• Role and responsibilities of the facilitator

The Independent Study Guide portion of the Instructor's Guide is designed for individuals taking an independent study course rather than a classroom-based course. Used in conjunction with the textbook and CD-ROM, the Independent Study Guide allows for a self-paced approach or one that conforms to a more structured schedule as determined by the facilitator. It provides a detailed, self-contained course of study that can easily be modified by the course facilitator. This includes:

• Guidelines and instructions for how to use the Independent Study Guide
• Description of the learning methods used
• Description of how mastery is demonstrated and evaluated
• Course materials list
• Role, responsibilities, and expectations of the student
• Course description and course objectives
• Master plan listing the basic content of all six chapters of the course
• Chapter objectives
• Chapter assignments
• Detailed written assignments for Experiential Learning Activities
• Checklists of assignments to complete before moving on to the next chapter
• Examination guidelines

There are at least three ways to use Professionalism in Health Care: A Primer for Career Success:

1. As the textbook for a classroom-based, instructor-led course (a separate course on professionalism or as part of another course, using the Instructor's Guide)
2. As the textbook for an independent study instructor-facilitated course (a self-paced, learn-on-your-own approach using the Independent Study Guide that is included in the Instructor's Guide)
3. As personal reading (a resource for self-instruction and review)

Professionalism in Health Care: A Primer for Career Success is designed for all types of nursing and allied students enrolled in college and university programs, vocational-technical programs, hospital-based programs, high school health occupations programs, and on-the-job training programs.

The textbook and CD-ROM materials may be incorporated into introductory, core curriculum, and capstone courses in nursing or allied health, professionalism, medical law and ethics, or office management and business. Additionally, this program can be used for preparation for internship/externship/practicum or in classes or seminars on topics such as employment strategies, job placement, and job success. Instructors may wish to use this text in introductory, general health care courses and then supplement the students' learning experience later on in more advanced, discipline-specific follow-up courses.

The textbook and CD-ROM may also be used in orientation sessions for new employees or for refresher courses for experienced health care workers to:

• Communicate performance standards for professionalism
• Emphasize customer service expectations
• Reinforce corporate mission, values, and teamwork
• Support corporate compliance and policy training
• Support performance improvement and skills enhancement

As mentioned earlier, this book can be used as personal reading or as the text for a classroom-based course or an independent study course. All students should read Chapters One through Five of the text. Students in educational programs that include an internship, externship, practicum, clinical, or some other type of real-life experience should also read Chapter Six as preparation for this "hands-on" experience.

We hope you find Professionalism in Health Care: A Primer for Career Success and its companion CD-ROM interesting, informative, and beneficial.