The Power of Gratitude
21 December 2022
Amy Martin shares how Christmas Schwartz Rounds have helped her team express the gratitude they have for each other, and remember the gratitude their clients have shown throughout the year.
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Sometimes in a small organisation, running Schwartz Rounds can be challenging. Fishing from the same small pool for panellists can leave you feeling worn down. Believing, as I do, in the power of Schwartz Rounds and the benefits for team members – I push to keep them going. In doing so, I occasionally happen upon ideas which help keep the storytelling going and make Rounds more sustainable. Our annual ‘Thank You’ Round is one such lightbulb moment.
I am often told by team members that it is easier to remember the complaints, the difficult cases, the times it didn’t go so well. However, what if we really focused on our clients and colleagues’ gratitude in a Round dedicated to this?”
So – once a year – this is exactly what we do. We gather thank you cards, colleague appreciation notes, customer survey results, google reviews and spend the hour talking about how grateful we are for each other and the gratitude our clients show in their best and worst moments.
In place of panellists, the facilitators take turns reading reviews and cards until the panel time runs out. Then we invite our colleagues to reflect on what they have heard, their own memories of a particular thank you that meant something to them, and their gratitude for one another and our clients.
Just like any Round, the discussion can go in many directions. Many of our clients choose to thank us when we have euthanised their pet companion or when – despite our best efforts – a patient dies. Whilst these stories are difficult to reflect upon, it is heart-warming to know that our clients appreciate the care and compassion they receive – even during their darkest times.
Sometimes these Rounds make us laugh when someone recollects a story of an unusual thank you or a strange gift. We also review cards where clients have hand drawn the picture or sent us a photograph of their pet back to their best life and feel touched by their efforts.
Often, we recall cases with happy outcomes that take the team down memory lane together, all remembering the patient and their story. Then there is the overwhelming sense of care and gratitude for each other as we remember patient stories, together from different perspectives. It’s not unusual to hear colleagues thanking each other for their help and support, or for going above and beyond for a particular patient.
It’s wonderful to run this Round at Christmas time. Particularly because, at that time, some of us are preparing to work the big bank holiday stretch in emergency and critical care. I like to hope that acknowledging the gratitude we receive sustains the team for some of the difficult shifts that lie ahead. And that the team know how appreciated they are. Plus, there’s always the Christmas chocolates…