title: It starts with a conversation: a community approach to creating healthy work environments.
abstract: A healthy work environment is needed to retain nurses. Among the factors that contribute to a healthy work environment are collaboration and communication. Through the leadership of the Palm Healthcare Foundation, Inc., a dialogue was started among health care stakeholders in Palm Beach County, Florida, resulting in a health care work force partnership community collaboration and initiatives to address the retention of nurses. One initiative was sponsoring a "train-the-trainer" program to raise awareness and provide skills for addressing factors that could affect work relationships, including emotional intelligence, generational differences, cultural competency and health literacy, employee crisis, and horizontal violence. A 6-month program evaluation was completed by the participants. A community approach provides a means for providers and educators to address common work force issues collaboratively.
authors.affiliation: Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL 33431, USA. jlongo5@fau.edu
authors.forename: Joy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Longo
authors.forename: Amy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dean
authors.forename: Shelby Darlene
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Norris
authors.forename: Suzette W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Wexner
authors.forename: Leslie N
authors.initials: LN
authors.lastname: Kent
mesh_terms: D019058:Community Networks / Q000458:organization & administration*; D005260:Female; D005431:Florida; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006307:Health Systems Agencies / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017146:Models, Organizational; D009740:Nursing Staff / Q000458:organization & administration*; D016272:Occupational Health; D015279:Organizational Culture; D015397:Program Evaluation