How to Advocate for Yourself

Nurses are advocates and must speak up, or be the voice, for a patient. However, nurses speak for so many that sometimes they forget to do this for themselves. Nurses may feel intimidated or scared to ask for help during their workday (maybe because they are trying to prove they are competent or they work in a culture that promotes an independent spirit) and knowing when and who to ask for help can be difficult. Nurses need to remember to advocate for themselves.

Self-Awareness

Self-awareness will assist you in knowing when to ask for help. A SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) is an assessment used in several professions for strategic planning and goal setting. It also may be used as a self-inventory to guide you in building your voice and advocating for yourself. The following is an example of a completed personal SWOT. Download a blank SWOT form to complete for your own personal self-inventory.

Knowing Your Weaknesses

Understanding your skills and knowledge weaknesses can help you know when to ask for help. You should take yearly, quarterly, and monthly competency assessments seriously because they will provide you with insight on your strengths and weaknesses related to specific skills and knowledge. When you are unsure or in doubt about a particular skill or knowledge, such as those related to tasks you do not perform on a routine basis (eg, defibrillator use, emergency situations), you should ask your preceptor, mentor, or charge nurse for help.

Staying Positive

It is important not to confuse self-doubt with fear. It is good to question actions and work practices; however, you should not allow fear to consume your workday thoughts. Table 1 provides examples of positive scripts that you can use to help turn negative thought patterns into positive thought patterns.

Table 1. Examples of Scripts to Reframe Negative Thoughts to Positive

Attitude is Everything

When asking for help, you should do it with an attitude of wanting to learn. An example phrase could be, “Please teach me how to do...I want to keep patients safe.” You should not wait until the last minute to ask for help because there may be times that someone is not available to assist you. If you know your assignments ahead of time, you should review key points of the procedure with a preceptor or another experienced nurse and ask them questions.

Overcoming Challenges

Many times, the issue of concern may be resolved at an interpersonal level, such as simply by asking for clarification or by rephrasing your own question or statement. However, when you are experiencing resistance or challenges related to advocating for yourself, you should not give up if you cannot solve a concern on your own. First, you can schedule a time with your preceptor to discuss your concerns and perspectives. You can share specific work events during which you have encountered resistance or challenges; for example, you could say, “On Monday afternoon during the case, the surgical technologist refused to perform a count and told me to mind my own business. I did not know how to respond to this statement. What do you suggest?” or “How would you have approached this situation?”

Most preceptors are willing to provide constructive criticism in a manner to help you grow as a professional; however, if you have a preceptor who is unwilling to help you, your next step would be to discuss your concerns with the charge nurse, nursing supervisor, or nurse manager. Each OR has a hierarchy of management and leadership to follow; you should understand the chain of command in your work area to know who to approach first.