Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation™ - Champion Spotlight Series - Georgia Nurses Association
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Organization goes virtual to build nurse resilience
We are pleased to shine the spotlight on the Georgia Nurses Association (GNA), an exceptional Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation™ Champion.
It began in 2019, when the Georgia Nurses Association joined Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation™. The organization kicked off its wellness initiatives with a bang by hosting “Restoring & Renewing: A Self-Care Extravaganza.” The event took place during Nurses Week on Saturday, May 11. It featured:
- Group yoga
- Massages
- Organic cold-pressed juice tastings
- Professional discussions on financial planning and self-care
- Raffle prizes
GNA’s in-person kick-off event was the perfect way to place the focus on nursing self-care and share the message of nurse wellness across Georgia. This extravaganza and other subsequent events, like meditation and yoga sessions, brought nurses together to focus on themselves and gain solidarity with other nurses.
Then came 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic, when everything changed. In-person events were put on hold and the Georgia Nurses Association shifted their focus to virtual events.
Going Virtual
The organization’s pride and joy became its online Community Resiliency Model® trainings and webinars. They teach nurses to develop resiliency resources to manage stress and trauma, and to help others. Other self-care webinars focus on combatting burnout and offer timely advice on how to take care of their minds, bodies, and interpersonal relationships.
For example, one of GNA’s most recent webinars covered the topic of grieving during COVID-19. It provided information on learning how to cope, and provided tools and skills to mentally survive the pandemic. Each webinar features a nurse who moderates or leads the discussion.
Other webinar topics have included:
- Building communication skills
- Quality of life
- Setting and pursuing career goals
- Nursing burnout
GNA has also offered nurses virtual support groups moderated by a nationally recognized doctor in psychology, Dr. Betsy Gard.
“A lot of nurses don’t know where to go or who to talk to, or how to handle the stress of the pandemic,” said Charlotte Báez- Díaz, communications manager at Georgia Nurses Association. “These support groups allow them to talk to colleagues about what they’re going through while getting input from an actual physician in psychology.”
The virtual resiliency trainings are popular among members because of their timeliness and ease.
“People love them because they don’t have to buy or pay for anything, and the information is useful in their personal lives as well as at the patient bedside,” said Charlotte.
Spreading the Healthy Nurse Word
GNA gets the word out about its wellness offerings and those of Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation through its monthly members-only newsletter, as well as a quarterly newsletter that goes to all Georgia nurses. GNA also spreads the word on its Facebook page, which currently has over 6,000 followers.
“We’re thrilled to be able to help take care of the whole nurse, not just their professional lives,” said Charlotte. “We diversify the content and talk about things like personal finance, retirement, legal questions they might have, virtual social networking — all things that relate to them as human beings. Our goal is to create a safe space to have their needs met.”
With the help of Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation, the Georgia Nurses Association sets nurses up for success in every aspect of life.
Are you a part of Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation (HNHN) yet? Join us today!
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Champion Spotlight
01/05/2021 2:38pm CST
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