Cultivating a Culture of Mindfulness

When Josh Campbell, BSN, RN, CMSRN, was promoted to assistant nurse manager on a medical-surgical unit at Cleveland Clinic Marymount Hospital near the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, he co-created a unit-based initiative to benefit nurses and patients.

“Our Press Ganey results identified a need to address increased stress and fatigue from the daunting effects of the pandemic that affected our nurses’ ability to provide high-quality care,” says Campbell.

He and Julie Kocon, BSN, RN, a clinical nurse on the unit, formed a committee and developed the Connect + Recharge program in 2021. The initiative encourages all caregivers on the unit to participate in three- to five-minute daily activities or “pauses” designed to connect with fellow staff and rejuvenate.

“The idea was to cultivate a culture of mindfulness and wellness,” says Campbell.

Opportunities to de-stress

The Connect + Recharge Committee created a monthly calendar of daily activities that were displayed on huddle boards at the nurses’ station. Favorite activities among caregivers included:

• Thirsty Thursday – Pop-up coffee bars and tea were available on the unit.
• Savasana Sunday – A health unit coordinator led chair yoga.
• Tell Us About You Tuesday – Various games and activities varied weekly to help caregivers get to know one another better. For example, staff shared their favorite song, holiday or vacation.
• “Dad Joke” Fridays – Caregivers shared wholesome, corny jokes to get peers to laugh – or groan.

“Josh made sure that every caregiver had something that they found relaxing – some activity they could find value in,” says Mallory Sovacool, BSN, RN-BC, nurse manager of the medical-surgical unit. For instance, some nurses indicated they preferred to unwind on their own rather than with others, so the committee included both solo and group activities.

Expanding on success

Building on the success of the activity calendar, the committee added several other components to the Connect + Recharge Program. They recruited a clinical nurse on the unit to serve as wellness champion. She provides resources offered through Cleveland Clinic. The unit also added a “break nurse” who works four-hour shifts to ensure clinical nurses receive breaks on busy shifts.

One of the most popular additions was a new member to the team – Rosie, the caregiver therapy dog. Rosie is a registered therapy dog owned by the health unit coordinator, who brings her to the unit approximately once a week.

“During the intervention phase of this project, our team reported increased support from caregivers to take breaks and enriched knowledge of available wellness resources,” says Campbell.

Prioritizing wellness

The Connect + Recharge Program contributed to a rise in Press Ganey scores for two consecutive years for the question, “The amount of stress I feel is reasonable.” The committee no longer posts activity calendars – and that’s OK with Campbell and Sovacool.

“Through the program, caregivers now understand the importance of prioritizing their wellness. It’s instilled in their everyday work, whether there is a calendar or not,” says Campbell. “People know they need to take care of themselves before they can ultimately take care of others and uphold Cleveland Clinic values.”