Self-managed work teams in nursing homes: implementing and empowering nurse aide teams.
OBJECTIVE
This article describes the progress of our study to examine the advantages and costs of using self-managed nurse aide teams in nursing homes, steps that are being taken to implement such teams, and management strategies being used to manage the teams.


METHODS
A quasi-experimental design is underway where certified nurse aide (CNA) teams are being established in five nursing homes (NHs) in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area, and five additional NHs are being treated as comparison NHs.


RESULTS
As of March 2004 CNA teams were established in five NHs, and baseline survey data were collected from the CNAs, nurses, residents, and family members in each of these NHs as well as from those in the five comparison homes.


CONCLUSIONS
Qualitative analyses show positive effects of CNA teams. Quantitative analyses will not be complete until follow-up survey data are collected 12 months after team implementation. Steps for implementing teams include surveying management to be sure that they want nurse teams; orienting and training the managers, nurses, and nurse aides; and facilitating the teams. Management of the teams includes routine feedback from management to the teams and vice versa while using a give-and-take approach.
Yeatts
Dale E
DE
Department of Sociology, University of North Texas, Denton, TX 76203, USA. yeatts@unt.edu
Cready
Cynthia
C
Ray
Beth
B
DeWitt
Amy
A
Queen
Courtney
C
D006126:Group Processes; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D006801:Humans; D008134:Long-Term Care / Q000458:organization & administration; D015401:Nursing Administration Research; D009728:Nursing Assistants / Q000458:organization & administration*; D009735:Nursing Homes / Q000458:organization & administration*; D009746:Nursing, Team / Q000458:organization & administration*; D010559:Personnel Management / Q000379:methods; D011209:Power, Psychological; D017009:Professional Autonomy; D012648:Self Care / Q000379:methods*; D013781:Texas; D000078329:Workforce