I gave a talk on Dignity about a month ago and someone asked me a very important question. “Charles, how do we convince staff that this is not just another program or another thing they are asking us to do?” My answer to that was when we look at the 10 Essentials of Dignity anyone of us can relate to a time when our dignity was violated and when we violated the dignity of others. Dignity is like breathing it is something we are required to do or we cannot survive. Dignity is not a program where if you follow these steps you will be successful. Dignity is a part of who we are. It is a part of our DNA. Please read further and you will see what I mean.
Dr. Donna Hicks PhD created what she called the 10 Essentials of Dignity. She discovered this in her work with conflict resolution. She has been all over the world but probably some of her most famous work was during the conflict between Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is where she met Bishop Desmond Tutu and she learned about How Nelson Mandela survived 27 years in prison and become the President of South Africa. This is where she created what she calls the “Mandela Consciousness.” Nelson Mandela survived by not allowing the prison guards to rob him of his dignity.
If we look at any conflict and get to the core of that issue both parties will believe that somehow their dignity was violated. I could look at major events in the world to give as examples but I want to start with something we have all experienced a fight with a friend, coworker, spouse, partner, child, or a stranger we just met. Think about a time when you were in a conflict. Look at these 10 Essentials of Dignity and see which ones you felt were violated and which ones you may have violated. If the conflict had resolution think about dignity and how you and the other party felt after. If your conflict went unresolved think about how you felt.
10 Essentials of Dignity:
- Acceptance of Identity
- Acknowledgement
- Inclusion
- Safety
- Fairness
- Freedom
- Understanding
- Benefit of the doubt
- Responsiveness
- Righting the Wrong
I want you to think about a time you did not feel included. How did it make you feel to not be included in an important decision that would affect you? What did it do to your trust? Did it make you feel angry? Did it create self-doubt? When we do not feel we matter it creates road blocks that are difficult to overcome. You want to be included in the conversation. Even if we disagree the fact that we could be part of the decision making is important to us. We feel like we belong.
My challenge for you is this. Look at the conflicts around you. If you are a leader what is causing division in your teams? If you are a healthcare organization what is causing decreased engagement among staff and what is affecting patient experience? If you look at these things through dignity you will see that 1 or all were probably violated or the person or parties felt they were violated.
Honor and elevate dignity it is who we are and it is part of our DNA
Charles Redd RN
Dignity Freedom Fighter
Dignity Freedom Fighter 