Jean Stroud is our amazing perioperative director. Jean goes above and beyond supporting staff every day. She is present at our morning 06:50 huddle more than any other person in the perioperative leadership. At this huddle, she focuses on staff resiliency and well-being. She encourages us each morning to stretch, to take a moment and reflect on something we are thankful for, or shares a helpful new app with us (headspace), or mindfulness strategy. She reminds us often to recognize the excellent work and compassionate care our team provides patients.
Jean's warm personality and open-door policy make her incredibly approachable in all situations. When we have concerns regarding physicians or process changes, she makes herself available. She's often seen in scrubs rounding to each room. She checks in with all staff-nurses, techs, and operating room assistants, etc. She also acts as a bridge between the many departments under her. Under her guidance, our sterile processing department, and materials management department heads are present every morning for our huddle so that they can communicate updates and answer questions.
Jean is truly a transformational leader. Her staff trusts her and often looks to her for guidance. More than once, the staff has come to her when they have problems interacting with other nurses or physicians. Jean will always hear your concerns and give you advice on how best to approach the conflict and communicate productively. If that doesn't go well, she will also personally intervene as necessary. Jean fosters professional development in all of her staff. She helped put in place a CNOR take-two certification program and often meets personally with staff to go over their PNDP portfolio. She shares important data on our unit, including our SSI and pressure injury numbers. Jean sends out regular emails with unit updates, welcoming new hires, tracking our unit goals, and sharing motivational and inspiring stories. Jean also puts a great effort into coordinating and supporting unit activities. She is instrumental in putting together our summer potluck for all perioperative staff and their families. She is also incredibly supportive of any baby showers, bridal showers, or team activities. She's coordinated nature hikes, boot camp workouts, and other team-building strategies. She recognizes the need for our unit to feel like a team and wants us to share experiences that bring us closer together.
Finally, Jean has been a beacon of hope and calm during these scary and uncertain times, dealing with the Novel Coronavirus pandemic. She meets with staff every morning and answers any questions or concerns. If she doesn't have an answer at that moment, she will escalate the concern and respond by the end of that day. She's even been sending daily email updates to catch staff who are not present every day. She's dealt with scared and angry staff members and manages to calm our growing anxiety by communicating clearly, utilizing active listening, and above all, reminding us to refocus on things we can control. She reminds us to have hope and to cherish the time we spend with loved ones.
Jean is truly an incredible leader. I can't imagine the OR functioning successfully without her.