Outstanding care, always.

Healthy Work Environments Best Practice Guidelines

In July of 2003 the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO), with funding from the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care (MOHLTC), working in partnership with Health Canada and the Office of Nursing Policy commenced the development of evidence-based best practice guidelines in order to create healthy work environments for nurses. The project will result in the following six Healthy Work Environments Best Practice Guidelines:

• Collaborative practice among nursing teams
• Developing and sustaining effective staffing and workload practices
• Developing and sustaining nursing leadership
• Embracing cultural diversity in health care: developing cultural competence
• Professionalism in nursing
• Workplace health, safety and well-being of the nurse

Kingston General Hospital and Hotel Dieu Hospital are the only acute care hospitals and one of only ten sites across the province to be selected as a pilot site organization for the Healthy Work Environments Best Practice Guidelines. The initiative began in late November 2006 and will run for approximately twelve months. The three guidelines that we will be piloting are: Embracing cultural diversity in health care: developing cultural competence; developing and sustaining nursing leadership; and workplace health, safety and well-being of the nurse.

For more information about RNAO Healthy Work Environments Best Practice Guidelines click http://www.rnao.org/