24 Jul What is Dignity Quotient?

According to Webster’s Dictionary, dignity is 1: The quality or state of being worthy of honor and respect. The belief in the dignity of all people. 2: a serious and admirable look or way of behaving. The definition of quotient is 1: the magnitude of a specified characteristic or quality.

When culture change and person-directed care caught my attention somewhere around 2005, I focused on the people we were taking care of. As the journey continued and we learned how to build better relationships with the residents, the quality of care improved. People were happier.

I have worked in long-term care my entire professional life. I spent 22 years working as a nursing home administrator. There have been many moments that have caused me pause and commanded greater attention. One such moment was a conversation with a colleague, also a nursing home administrator. We were discussing the staffing challenges she was having and the point system in place for call-ins. Turnover was high because people were ‘pointing out’. ‘Have you ever asked them why they call-in? I mean really why? I asked. Her response sticks with me today, and when I look back, it was probably the beginning of my  itch to make a difference outside my own nursing home bubble. She said, “Leslie I don’t have the time or the desire to learn about the staff’s personal lives.”

Why do we focus so much time on getting to know our residents, but so little time getting to know the staff caring for them? We have an expectation that our staff will give 100% compassionately to our residents every minute of their shift, but are we giving 100% compassionately to our staff? Do we know who they are? Why they are there? What gets them excited and what makes them weep?

There are hundreds of quotes out there about happy staff makes happy customers. Healthcare is different though. It’s deeper than that. It’s peoples lives all meshed together.

I am a huge proponent of language and have kept a copy of The Power of Language to Create Culture in my desk since its release. The Old Language vs. New Language sheet was part of new staff orientation. Facility became the new “F” word and Community took its place. The definition of community is 1: a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests and goals.

Dignity Quotient is about creating cultures and communities where people are seen, heard, understood and respected. Our foundational belief is treating care-partners with dignity is the essential ingredient to providing exceptional care for our residents and their families. In a DQ community, each care-partner will…

Believe they matter

Know their value

Understand their why

Believe they can feel good about the work they do

Be trained to handle challenging scenarios with dignity

Understand that authentic connection matters

In our culture we know we will feel worthy of honor and respect as we treat others with honor and respect.

Dignity Quotient is committed to helping your organization reach its full potential by teaching you foundations of creating a culture built on authentic connections. Each one of us has unique qualities and contributions that we give to our team. DQ gives us the vision to use these qualities to build better relationships. The connections built among your team will leave them inspired to be the best version of themselves.

Are you ready to turn up your DQ?