CONFLICT – AVOID “ME AGAINST YOU” SITUATIONS
What happens when a visit does not go well?
What happens when a provider decides she doesn’t want you as her Monitor anymore and threatens to go with another program?
Do you feel that the problem lies solely with the provider?
Can this situation be settled?
COMMON GOALS
Because an important part of your responsibility is to ensure accountability, it might be easy to assume that you and providers have no commonality. It is important that you work with your providers. It is much easier when home visits go smoothly; and most monitors and providers share the goal of having this process be as easy as possible. There are actually many common goals that are shared by you and providers.
MONITOR: You want providers to affiliate with your program.
You want your providers to have the ability to create accurate and appropriate records.
PROVIDER: Providers want to affiliate in order to be reimbursed for the meals they serve and the children they care for.
Providers, for the most part, want to be able to submit accurate records because their reimbursement is based on doing so.
How do you capitalize on those points of common interest? There are a number of ways that you can reinforce mutually beneficial visits. The following is a list of tips that can be helpful when you are building teamwork.
Most often when an organization refers to the individuals they serve as ‘clients’ the whole aspect of good customer relations comes into play. When you think about it, the providers affiliated with your program are your clients. Both Provider Resources and Bethel Child Care provide a service to providers who want to receive reimbursement for meals care they provide. Yes, you have a responsibility to assure accountability and reliability, but you also create a distinct advantage for your agency when you can view providers as valuable clients and deal with them in a respectful way. It’s helpful when you provide trainings and meetings to be mindful of the language used when describing your child care providers.
When organizations are able to view home monitoring visits as a part of good customer service there is often a positive change in attitude.
Never make an assumption about a provider based on their location. One of the strengths of family child care is its diversity. Individuals providing this type of child care can generally be found in almost every neighborhood in almost every city and town in the United States. What an incredible resource. It is important that individuals responsible for monitoring these facilities do not make assumptions regarding the quality of the program based on bias or pre-conceived notions.
An important part of your visit is being a resource. You may be the only professional resource your providers see most frequently. You want your providers to be able to look forward to those visits because they offer accurate information, reliable answers to questions, and useful resources; think about how home visits could become a much more positive experience for everyone involved. Consider these suggestions:
• Discuss with your providers your desire to work with them in being a resource that can help their childcare business.
• Conduct a meeting with your providers and ask them for suggestions regarding what they feel would make home visits more satisfying for everyone involved.
• At your visit leave the provider a small questionnaire asking them what they need for training and resources
• Follow up and discuss with providers what you can and cannot do in the scope of you job responsibilities.
In some instances, providers and monitors butt heads and it becomes a “Me against You” situation. The following is a situation where provider and home visitor are in direct conflict:
PROBLEM: Provider is angry because you came unannounced and she finds it disruptive. She wants you to call before coming. In the past you have told her it is your right to come unannounced and demanded she let you in. You are very annoyed with her attitude. Provider is very annoyed with yours.
SOLUTION: When confronting a provider that you have had difficulty with, take a deep breath and instead of confrontation try to have a discussion.
In the past you have told her it is your right to come unannounced and asserted she must let you in. Instead of exerting your right, explain to the provider that part of your job responsibility is to conduct one or more unannounced visits. Talk with the provider about your common goal – you need to make the visit, she needs to get proper reimbursement. Ask provider for suggestions on how you can make those visits with a minimum of disruption. It may mean that you help her to have a better record keeping system so that paperwork is readily available with a minimum amount of disruption.
Working together to attain common goals with help to break down the “Me against You” situation.