Staff at Swift Current hospital combat post-pandemic tension with holiday decorating
Critical care nurse says 'a dark cloud' hung over the hospital after the pandemic
The maintenance department isn't usually a must-see destination in a hospital.
But in Swift Current, Sask., the repairmen have transformed a hallway deep inside Cypress Regional Hospital with scenes from the Christmas classic Home Alone.
Staff from other departments drop by to chuckle at the sight of the Wet Bandits stepping on broken ornaments and getting covered in feathers.
One floor up, the women and children's ward features a Baby Express train leaving the "Dilation Station" on its way to the North Pole.
The holiday decorating contest has injected some joy into a workplace not usually known for its fun factor. It's all part of a recent effort to make the hospital a happier place.
Make it better — or quit
Chantal Henderson has been a critical care nurse in the hospital's emergency department and intensive care unit for more than a decade.
She went on maternity leave in August 2022. When she returned a year later, she was struck by the tension, even toxicity, in the workplace.
"The animosity between wards had increased," she said.
While some of the issues were the culmination of three years of pandemic pressures, including depleted resources and burned-out staff, she said communication breakdowns in the fast-paced, high-stress hospital setting can often lead to disagreements between departments.
"There was kind of a dark cloud over the building and it was hard to be your best when that's there," she said.
Henderson realized she had two choices: help boost staff morale or quit her job.
"I felt that if I wanted to keep working in the department that I love, I had to make some changes."
She met with her manager and the hospital director and settled on the idea of starting a workplace engagement committee. More than a dozen staff members who shared her concerns showed up to the first meeting and brainstormed ways to improve staff relations and mental health.
They started by renting a gym for a dodge ball game. Next, about 30 hospital employees went to a WHL game with tickets donated by the Swift Current Broncos. From there, the new committee organized a staff barbecue, a cookbook with recipes from 300 employees, and a Halloween-themed decorating contest and bowling party.
For Christmas, they organized a hospital-wide party, a gingerbread house contest and a department decorating contest.
The hospital feels festive and fun now, according to Morgan Montgomery, the clinical services manager for the renal, chemo and critical care units.
"It's got everyone kind of talking to each other, and just that lightheartedness and happiness is brought back to the workplace," she said. "It's brought everyone closer together into one community."
Team effort
Montgomery gives full credit to the staff members who volunteer their time.
"This was their idea. This was them wanting to make a change," Montgomery said. "We can, as leaders, try to implement changes and work on morale, but ultimately the staff buying into it is what's going to make the difference."
In the therapy department, staff have all pitched in to create Dr. Seuss's Who-ville. Tami Pavely, a speech language pathologist, said the decorations have attracted "lots of smiles, lots of compliments, and the kids are loving it."
Back in the ER, Henderson didn't try to inflate the impact. She said these staff activities won't fix the deeper problems plaguing Saskatchewan's healthcare system, such as staffing shortages and workload pressures, but she believes improving morale will make a difference for both workers and patients.
"I think it's really important that when people come to work, they enjoy being at work," she said.
"Not only is that good for the workers, but I think that energy gets passed on to the patients and the care that they're provided."
And even though it's extra work, Henderson believes it's worth it to continue doing the job she loves.
"I don't want to leave. So if I could somehow make it a better environment to work in, it would make me a happier person in the end."
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