Trust is the cornerstone of virtual nursing, a hybrid care model where nurses operate directly and remotely. While essential, trust is not created in an instant. Building trust requires time and effort, and it can be easily eroded, making it a crucial element to consider in virtual nursing care models.

Building trust and improving collaboration are necessary; they are the foundation of a successful virtual care model. They allow patients to have a positive experience and healthcare professionals to feel valued and integral to the process.

If the direct care nurse is unsure of how things work in a virtual nursing model, that uncertainty can easily be sensed by the patient, which can cause them to be uncertain and untrusting of the model. On the other hand, if the direct care nurse is comfortable with the virtual nurse and, more importantly, with the overall concept of virtual nursing, the patient is also more likely to trust that relationship and the care model in general. There has never been a more critical time to “manage up” a colleague.

Building trust in nurses requires both parts of the equation to put in effort, do that consistently, and start by respecting and valuing the other’s contribution as a healthcare professional. Building trust in a virtual care model requires personal connections. When a unit adopts virtual nursing, it’s beneficial for the virtual nurses to meet the unit-based care team in person whenever possible.

This personal interaction helps to humanize the virtual nurse, fostering a sense of connection and empathy. It’s a way to remind everyone that they are real people practicing nursing, albeit in different modalities.

Another great way to build trust amongst the care team is for the virtual nurses to connect briefly at the start of every shift to check in with the nurses they’re supporting or the charge nurse just for a quick introduction and human connection, even if the phone calls. This also helps to connect the name and the human behind the scenes. It is vital to have the entire team remember the human connection and continue to foster a relationship among the care team. Some organizations might continue this practice, while others may only utilize the connection component long enough to establish relationships.

Trust is essential because if the virtual nurse needs to intervene quickly or communicate with the direct care nurse, there must be trust on both sides so patient care is not compromised. Transparency in data and outcomes is also essential. This means that when charts are reviewed for completeness and accuracy in documentation, the results are shared with the virtual nurse, the virtual nursing team, and the unit where the virtual nurses serve. Data in metrics are essential to give everyone a sense of the quality of care and to help continuously foster improvement on all sides, providing confidence and security in the process. This also means that positive and negative feedback should be shared promptly to ensure the highest-performing virtual care team.

Interest in virtual nursing and the virtual care team continues to evolve and increase. Building trust will be essential to practicing nursing and providing patient care in this manner.

We want to ensure that nurses on both sides of the equation have a good experience and that utilizing a virtual nursing care delivery model has made their jobs easier and allowed them to find more joy in the work of nursing again. This will likely remain a work in progress for the unit utilizing virtual nursing practice for quite a long time. Even when these systems work optimally, any change in personnel requires introduction and relationship building to ensure the same degree of trust is built.