1. Managing Team Conflict
Teacher notes:
ASK STUDENTS: Do you think there is ever “conflict” among members of a health care team? Why? Students may respond that because of our differences as individuals, disagreements or conflict can be inevitable.
EXPLAIN: Sometimes there is conflict in a healthcare setting. The purpose of this unit of instruction is to help you learn to recognize the signs of conflict, and develop effective strategies for conflict resolution.
EXAMPLE: You may give a personal example of a time when you managed a conflict in a healthcare setting.
Managing Team Conflict
A healthy approach to communication and problem-solving.
Foundation Standard 8.23

2. Use Assertive Communication
Respect the rights of others.
Stand up for your rights and beliefs.
Look for a win-win solution.
Teacher notes:
This slide introduces the main ideas for assertive communication.

3. What are rights? Rights are things you are morally entitled to.
You have the right to stand up for your rights.
Do you have the right not to?
You must respect the rights of others.
You DO NOT have the right to violate their rights.
It’s a balancing act to know where your rights end and another person’s rights begin.
Teacher notes:
Allow students to respond to the question – Do you have the right NOT to stand up for your rights? Ask them to give an example.

4. Whose rights? The boys next door want to practice their music.
Dina is a college student with an 8 AM chemistry class, and the noise keeps her awake at night.
Teacher notes:
Allow students to discuss and share their thoughts. Does the band have the right to prevent Dina from sleeping? Does “sleep” trump practicing music?

5. Whose rights?
Mrs. Avenue is a member of your community who wears furs.
You have a moral objection to her wearing animal fur.
What are her rights?
What do you have the right to do to protest her furs?
What don’t you have the right to do?
Teacher notes:
Ask the questions on the slide. Students need to learn to respect the rights of others, even when they do not agree with the other person.
Encourage students to approach the discussion of rights with their heads and not their hearts. The key is not just to focus on “my rights” but to also think about the rights of others.

6. Whose rights? Mrs. Camel smokes in her car on the way to work.
The odor on Mrs. Camel’s uniform and hair is offensive to one of her patients.
Does Mrs. Camel have the “right” to smoke on her way to work and during her breaks?
Teacher notes:
Ask the question on the slide. If the nurse has a right to smoke and the patient has a right to patient care that is not “offensive”, whose right takes precedence?

7. What is a win-win?
In a win-win decision, the rights of both parties are respected.
To achieve a win-win, sometimes you need to redefine the goal.
The goal of conflict resolution is often to find a win-win solution.

8. Find the Win-Win Mary and Janika are going to split a dessert.
Mary wants the chocolate cake.
Janika wants apple pie with ice cream.
If they flip a coin to decide, is that a win-win?
Teacher notes:
Ask the coin flip question. Students should determine that flipping a coin is a win-lose solution. This is not to say that flipping a coin is “wrong” but it’s not a win-win. Maybe what Mary really wants is “chocolate”, and a win-win could be to order apple pie with chocolate ice cream???
The key to a win-win is redefining the goal so that both parties get what they want, or both parties agree on a solution that makes them both happy/satisfied.

9. Choose Your Conflicts Wisely
Is there ever a time when you should walk away from a conflict?
Alanna walks past a construction site. A worker yells out “Hey baby. Wanna sit on my lap!”
Should Alanna correct the man’s rude behavior?
Teacher notes:
Ask students to respond to the question on the slide, and explain why.
Can they think of other times when it is best to not engage in a conflict?
Can you think of any professional examples (as a healthcare worker) when you made the choice NOT to participate in a conflict? Share your example with your students.

10. What are the Rules?
If you could write three rules for when NOT to choose a conflict, what would they be?
Teacher notes:
Give students five minutes to work in small groups of two or three students to come up with their three rules. Then let students share their “rules.”
After students come up with their reasons for not engaging in conflict, ask if they have any general rules for when they should choose a conflict. This discussion should be very interesting, and also very productive. You are encouraging students to THINK about their behavior, and choices.

11. Gather the Facts
If you are in a conflict, the first thing you need to do is to gather the facts.
Give the other person the benefit of the doubt until you have all the facts.
Do NOT depend on third-hand information.
Always ask – don’t accuse.
Teacher notes:
Ask students if they can share an example of a time when they jumped to the wrong conclusion about something.
Ask students if they can share an example of a time when third-hand information they received was not accurate.
Explain that in a professional setting, behavior that is acceptable with their friends simply isn’t appropriate when working with other healthcare professionals. No matter how obvious something might be, learn to approach the conflict by asking. When you ask, you are giving the other person the benefit of the doubt. Asking is less aggressive.
AND, if it turns out you missed something, it keeps you from looking foolish.

12. Gather the Facts Jamar is a pharmacist in the Walmart pharmacy.
Brenda agrees to work for him on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, Jamar comes to work and sees that Brenda did not work on Tuesday.
What should he do?
Teacher notes:
Ask students what Jamar should do.
Then, ask students what some of the possible explanations are that might explain why Brenda did not work on Tuesday for Jamar.

13. Gather the Facts Hey Brenda. How did it go yesterday?
It was crazy. They sent me to the Walmart on the South Side because of that flu outbreak, and I worked 14 hours!
Teacher notes:
Explain to students – people don’t always have a good reason for what happened, but by asking the question rather than jumping to a conclusion, you can achieve the same results in a more professional manner.

14. Conflict Resolution Communication is the key to resolving conflicts.
When you find yourself in a conflict – think about your personal rule for dealing with conflict.
I will communicate fairly.

15. To communicate effectively…
Stay calm and control your tone of voice.
Arrange a suitable time and place to discuss differences.
Listen carefully to the other person’s point of view.
Teacher notes:
On this slide and the next, after you reveal each rule, ask a volunteer to explain WHY the rule is important to effective communication when resolving a conflict.

16. To communicate effectively…
Resolve the conflict at the first available opportunity.
Attack the issue, not the person.
Don’t store up all your complaints and frustrations for the future.
If necessary, ask for a mediator.

17. Manage your Conflicts
Learning to effectively manage conflicts will make you a happier person,
And a more successful healthcare professional.