During a placement there was one student who constantly had a messy plinth area during and between patients, and did minimal to help in ‘house keeping’. This made the rest of us students look bad even though the rest of the plinths were tidy. A physio in the department had a word with us, but the messy student wasn’t even there. As ridiculous as this sounds, the mess irritated me.
I think I have become one of those pedantic neat physios. I found myself tidying their plinth because it was irritating. I just thought there was no reason to have a messy area (sheets half on the plinth, pillows randomly placed, towel messed up, US machine in cubicle) since the rest of us are able to keep a tidy area. On a couple of occasions, after waiting 15 minutes or longer to see if the student would tidy their area, I reminded the student that their area needed tidying ( very very very very nicely/subtly of course!). By the end of the placement the student was somewhat neater.
From the situation I have learnt that people do notice messiness/tidiness and that it is important to keep an area tidy. It also highlighted to me memories of 1st 2nd and 3rd year pracs thinking some physios were pedantic about specific ways of having things organized and set out, but now I understand where they were coming from.
I have learnt that people might not realize that their habits/ways of doing things can irritate others, no matter how small the issue. Physios should have their individual style to how they carry out and organize things; however I believe keeping a plinth area tidy should be simple enough no matter what organizational style they have. If in future a similar scenario was raised, it would be worth nicely addressing the issue with the person which could result in a better working environment. Little irritations in the workplace could lead to greater arguments, which is why it would be important to address the issue sooner rather than later.
4 comments:
I think it is important to address small issues with your peers/colleagues otherwise either you still have to face the issue or it can become a big issue that creates conflict. Plinths are communal places and I agree that they should be kept tidy.
I think somebody getting physiotherapy is entiled to a clean environment. Not having a clean and tidy working area is the same as not washing your hands between patients!
Being a bit pedantic myself about a neat/clean treatment area..... I also believe its important to keep your treatment area clean as this is your patients "First impression" of their physiotherapy experience with you. Nothing turns a patient off more than dirty linen, lipstick marks around the nose hole etc. And general tidiness will leave a more positive first impression to the patient. On a different note, consider that a messy work environment may leave hazards for a patient eg tripping over the US machine cord, catching their foot on a sheet that is falling off a plinth etc.
A neat treatment area is really important. Because first impression last! If you make a bad first impression, you will need to work even harder to gain the confidence of your patients.
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