This week, I had the pleasure and privilege of having my hair cut and styled at Oscar Oscar. This amazing treat was courtesy of The Gold Coast Bulletin Woman of the Year campaign, for which my dear friend and colleague, Christa Bell, and I have been nominated.
Afterwards, my children asked me why it was I, and not another nominee, that got this lucky chance. I suggested that I was probably the sixth person they contacted and happened to be available. My children suggested that it was because the other ladies already had nice hair. #loyalty.
Anyway.
The nomination of Christa and myself has been made by Gold Coast Health, our employers, and I presume that it’s made on the basis of the work we are trained and paid to do (looking after patients who come to our Emergency Departments) but also perhaps for the little bit extra we bring to our workplace and community. For me, this is the energy that we put into enhancing the “humanistic” aspect of the care we provide – some have called these “soft” or “non-technical” skills.
We have been working to put a sharper focus on what helps us to connect with our patients and, indeed, even with each other, as we work together to ensure that the patient experiences care in the true sense of the word. This includes clear and respectful communication, attentive listening, effective leadership, collaboration and teamwork. These are the ideas that have been occupying my mind and work for a couple of years now.
Imagine my delight then when I experienced this same sense of being truly looked after, for the same reasons that we have been working to promote, while I was at the hairdresser!
First, Oscar himself came and sat with me, to get to know not only my hair (in its neglected state) but a little about me and what would feasibly “work” for me.
I’m paraphrasing this first conversation but it went something like this:
Oscar – So, er, I can see your hair isn’t a … priority for you. Are you planning on growing it, or keeping it this length?
Me – You’re presuming I give that kind of thought to my hair, and that what you see here is by design rather than by accident.
Oscar – Hmm…
Within just a few moments, Oscar immersed himself into my everyday life and made some preliminary decisions regarding what would be stylish but still practical.
Next was the decision regarding colour. When Jim came over, Oscar didn’t simply direct him regarding this. They had an open and thoughtful dialogue about what might be best and for what reasons. They then looked to me for input at which point, I piped up with “Well, I’ve never had my hair coloured before….” After a fleeting moment of barely-withheld shock, they together decided that something subtle – that would not be too obvious either now or when it inevitably grew out – would be the sensible way to go.
It reminded me of the time my obstetrician deferred to his trainee’s skill over my pregnancy scan. I remember reflecting, “Huh, you would think that, as a patient, that would make me feel less confident about my senior specialist, but actually… I feel more confident in his judgement. I feel like he knows the limitations of his expertise and will ask for input and help, even from a junior. I feel pretty safe in his hands.”
Not only is the collaboration good for the end result, it is also incredibly empowering to team members: that their opinion would be sought and valued. It’s the kind of leadership that in turn engenders leadership in others, and a non-hierarchical team approach to a challenge.
Oscar got to work with a trim while Jim prepared the colour and then I was in Jim’s hands. When time came for my blow-dry, Oscar again stated, “Jim is a much better blow-drier than I am. I’m the cutter”. And this then started a conversation about how a team works best when each member is worked to their strengths.
These days, I am very rarely the best person in my department at a given procedure. Sure, I can conduct any of them with aptitude. But my role has evolved over the last few years to oversight and supervision, ensuring that all the patients in our departments receive the best care. This means that, while I’m always aware and involved, I’m not often occupied at length with performing a procedure. At any given time, we have excellent junior doctors and trainees (and nurses) who are vying for these opportunities, and because they are doing them regularly, are very slick at these procedures. I have no qualms in looking for help when a patient needs a procedure, and I will balance ensuring that I remain technically skilled with ensuring that the patient receives the best care.
What resulted was a beautiful cut and an easy style. Oscar told me “I figured within a couple of minutes of meeting you that you needed something easy and unfussy.” He did add, “Even though your hair is not a priority for you, it is still possible to have a nice manageable hairstyle”. Lesson learned, Oscar.
I learned more than that however. My experience made me appreciate that providing a quality haircut can be a complex adaptive challenge, kind of similar to delivering healthcare. It requires technical expertise of course – you need to know how to cut and style hair just like you need to know how to diagnose and manage a fractured bone.
However, to deliver the service in a manner that is holistic and humanistic – to ensure that what is provided by the server meets what is needed by the consumer – and to do this in an environment where demands and resources are constantly changing, you need to tap deeper. You do this by forming a connection, truly understanding the whole context behind the acute need, and making sure your client (or patient) leaves with their issue addressed, be that unruly neglected hair or a broken bone.
Who knew?*
*I suspect that Oscar knew, and that’s why he has been so effective and successful in this industry. The only thing you got wrong is that hair might be my number two priority. It’s a bigger number…
Thank you, Oscar Oscar and The Gold Coast Bulletin, for looking after me, and teaching me some valuable insights.
Photo taken by Brooke Stoddart, The Gold Coast Bulletin, and shared with permission.
