How Misericordia Uses Coaching to Support and Develop Staff

by Ann Wilson

Mary Ann Goode has been a Mis employee, on and off, for the last 24 years. Initially a DSP, she then became a supervisor and director. Following that, she took off seventeen years to raise her four kids. A dedicated runner and tennis enthusiast, she also makes a mean fruit pie, brownie and cookie. (Watch out block club bakers!)  

Mary Ann has now returned to Misericordia as the leader of PHI and Fit For Success, training initiatives that focus on professional development, team-building and effective communications among staff In residential departments, Therapy, Social Services, and Recreation and Leisure.

I wanted to dig deeper into what skills Mary Ann brings to the table, the challenges the pandemic has presented, and where she sees successes and areas for improvement.

But first, some background. In 2018, Misericordia was awarded a grant from the Coleman Foundation, along with 11 other area agencies that form the Intersect for Ability Coalition. The specific training program for the grant was developed through PHI, a consulting/research/advocacy group based in New York. The PHI coaching approach focuses on helping supervisors and leaders develop core interpersonal skills that include active listening, self-awareness and self-management, and clear, non-judgmental communication. The goal in using this approach is to increase staff satisfaction and effectiveness, which will lead to better quality of care for the residents, improve retention and decrease costs related to staff turnover. 

Misericordia quickly realized the value of extending the training to all staff, and added additional training for DSP/CNA staff called the Coaching Approach to Communication. The Coaching Approach to Communication trainings involve a similar set of skills that leadership has been trained in as well. Misericordia has also added PHI boosters which serve as short “refresher“ trainings to revisit skills taught in the original session. Through offering this program regularly to all staff, Misericordia develops a common language that strengthens its teams and creates the supportive workplace that Misericordia seeks to build.

There are eight staff members, from across the organization, who participated in a five-day Train the Trainer program through PHI. Mary Ann is responsible for over-seeing the training team, scheduling trainings, and further developing how the PHI skills can be implemented across the organization.  New trainers are added, as needed.  Also, new training materials are developed in response to the changing needs of employees.

Enter the pandemic. How does an organization hold trainings that are dependent on modeling and practicing interpersonal skills? Mary Ann and her fellow presenters had to get creative. During the first few months of the pandemic, all trainings ceased as most of the campus was shut down and staff were unable to mix cohorts. “During this time, we needed to be creative about delivering the training in alternative ways,” Mary Ann says. They developed several short online training videos. They also offered what is typically a two-day training, through Microsoft Teams, over the course of eight weeks. They have also been able to offer a very condensed version to all of the new DSPs during their initial training with Misericordia. Mary Ann says, “We are delighted to be returning to more in-person trainings now that the campus is slowly re-opening.” However, the team’s shift to offer more virtual trainings has made it easier for some staff to sign up and participate. 

The biggest challenge, however, is understanding the difficulty in measuring the impact of the training. While the leaders hoped implementing the training would impact employee retention rates, they know that there are many factors at play influencing those rates, and the pandemic has only added to that. “While it’s difficult to measure we do know, anecdotally, that many supervisors have appreciated being able to look at their challenges through the PHI Coaching Approach,” adds Mary Ann.

We all could benefit from working on our inter-personal skills at work, but what about using these skills with our family members and friends? I asked Mary Ann if she has found this skill set useful when interacting with her family and friends. She says, “We always stress that the more these skills are used in our everyday lives –– both at work and at home –– the more habit-forming they will become. Having worked with this program now for over three years, I am aware of many opportunities to actively listen and clearly communicate with my family. I may not always get it right, but awareness is the first step toward changing behavior.”

The grant officially ended in the summer of 2020. However, Miserocordia has remained committed to continuing PHI training throughout campus. Mis will continue to offer trainings, and is in the process of developing some of its own trainings that relate back to PHI skills. Misericordia will also continue to participate with other agencies sharing PHI-related resources through the Intersect For Ability Coalition. 

As a Misericordia parent and dear friend of Mary Ann’s, I appreciate her and her team’s dedication to the development of positive and effective communication skills.