As per my experience one of the most effective tool in handling conflict at work would be effective listening. When one listens one shows that you care and are willing to address the issue at hand. Many times by just listening to the other person, he or she feels acknowledged and is willing to tackle the situation with a calmer attitude. As a charge nurse many times I have had to talk with patients who may be complaining about their nurses or the wait time. My first approach at introduction is to let the patient know that I am there to listen and would like to know how I can make things better, assuring them that I would do everything possible to make them comfortable and meet their expectations. Obviously I try to find out from the nurses or other persons involved in the conflict about the situation before talking to the patient so I can have a fair idea of what is going on, and that way I may already have an answer when walking into the patient’s room. One thing I have notice, a lot of times upset patients calm down once they talk with management, this is due to the fact that they do not feel neglected; of course this is not always the case.

One of my “hot buttons” is not being able to handle well when someone curse or disrespect me by yelling at me. I have always said that I do not curse or yell at anyone, because I treat people the way I expect to be treated. Usually I would tell the patient or coworker that I am not disrespecting so I would not allow any such behavior. If it continues I would walk away and ask someone else to handle the situation, I do recognize this is not the right way. Next time I encounter a similar situation I will do as Dr. Lorraine Segal suggests: while breathing in and breathing out say to myself that I am breathing in peace and breathing out peace. I believe by practicing this exercise I will be able to confront difficult situations in a more effective manner.