The Dark Side of Education: How Leaders Accidentally Train Teams to Ignore What Matters

Somewhere along the line, we got stuck as leaders.

We audited something.
We put a bunch of information in a red, purple or green binder.
We threw some education into a PowerPoint.

We meant well.

But those actions didn’t build awareness.
They sedated it.
They pulled us and our teams quietly in the wrong direction.
Right toward the Bang.

We thought we were being proactive.
We trained on “change in condition.”
We used phrases like “baseline” and “symptoms to monitor.”
Staff attended the “mandatory” in-service, nodded, signed the roster…
…and the next day?
The same issue was overlooked.
The same adverse event happened.
The same silence.

Here’s the truth we don’t like to admit:
We never moved our expectations out of our own heads.
We assumed common sense or “critical thinking” would catch it.
And when it didn’t, we blamed the people closest to the harm.
But here’s the punchline:
It wasn’t their lack of awareness.
It was our vague words.

So, what do we do differently?
This isn’t about better slide decks.
It’s NOT about adding more content or handing out another laminated reminder.
It’s about rewriting how we talk, teach, and expect action—so our teams can actually see what
matters before the harm happens.
Here are three shifts you can make right now:

1. Define thresholds clearly
Stop saying: “Monitor closely” or “Report changes.”
Start saying: “Call the nurse if Mrs. J eats less than half her meal, or if she refuses twice in a
row.”
Awareness grows when action has a clear trigger.

2. Redefine baseline as ‘when the person is well’
We throw the word “baseline” around like everyone knows what it means.
But staff often think baseline = the current normal, even if that “normal” is decline.
Baseline isn’t about what’s typical—it’s about what’s well.
When you anchor staff in a resident’s true well baseline, any drift away from that state
becomes an early warning.

3. Reward vigilance, not just rescue
Right now, most of our systems glorify what happens after the Bang—incident reports, at-risk
meetings, corrective actions.
Flip the script. Highlight the CNA who caught something early, the nurse who asked “what’s
different today?” and the team who spoke up before harm.
You get more of what you celebrate.

Awareness doesn’t grow by accident.
It grows because leaders choose words that make invisible risks visible—and create a culture
where noticing small shifts matters.
If you want different outcomes, you have to say things differently.
If you want awareness, you have to build it on purpose.
And if you want your team to care again?
Stop teaching them to shut down.