The #1 thing your ward needs right now.

There are several things which would improve every ward across most health care systems. But foot massages and free lunches aren’t going to happen any time soon. But there is one thing which needs to be a focus for us all.

Social Capital.

This is not a familiar concept in nursing. But slowly with the considered and conscious action of all of the nursing community, we can make wonderful changes.

So what is social capital? The formal answer is:

Social capital is the effective functioning of social groups through interpersonal relationships, a shared sense of identity, a shared understanding, shared norms, shared values, trust, cooperation, and reciprocity.

A more simplified way of looking at it is:

Social capital is obtained by building goodwill. This is the simplest way to describe how someone can build or obtain social capital. Social capital can be seen in action in the individual, the group or the community. 

In nursing, we can look at social capital as a concept which describes the formative relationships necessary for successful practice in modern healthcare organizations. Social capital may be described as the relationships between individuals and our employers that facilitate action and create value.

The building of the required relationships, connection and goodwill required for social capital takes time. But the research tells us that the communities which take the time to build these relationships have less bullying, less burnout, more collaboration and better outcomes for staff and patients alike. Working together takes away many issues and opens up resources for all. As we focus on building connections we all become stronger, tighter bonds with our colleagues are formed and the very system itself is more sustainable. 

See your community as a source of energy, not the source of your problems. 

In the coming weeks, I'll share real-life examples of how you can bring about social capital on your ward. I’ll also be sharing links to research on this topic in my Handover emails each Sunday. Click here to sign up, so you do not miss out.