Big bad bullies

Specialties Emergency

Published

I am on a committee to discuss, deal and eradicate nurses eating their young. Hard and impossible task I know; However, something must be done! We recently had a few issues with very experienced nurses belittling our new nurses. Yes, the new nurse may have over sold themselves in their interview, but who doesn't? Now the experienced nurses are very quick to pass judgement and to talk down to the new nurses like they are stupid for not being the best at NG tubes or a pediatric Foley cath.

I am trying to come up with a catchy, possibly somewhat silly/dumb phrase to get people attention that we need to educate and not belittle.

Does anyone have any ideas on this they can share or what they may have done in their own ER?

Thanks!!!

Specializes in Pediatrics, Emergency, Trauma.
I think as part of this campaign, you should also make a point to teach new nurses, that when the are corrected by more experienced RNs, that does not necessary mean the experience RN is eating them...that experienced RN may actually be trying to make the new nurse a better nurse.

This.

Let's be clear on what constitutes as unprofessional behavior CLEARLY.

Specializes in Emergency/Cath Lab.

You mean someone who over sold themselves can't take criticism. Shocked.

Specializes in RN, CHPN.

ljrn135, How about...

BE AWARE….and Care

Bullying: is the purposeful attempt to control another person through verbal abuse - which can be in tone of voice or in content such as teasing or threats, exclusion, or physical violence. Bullying is the most common type of violence in contemporary US society and can exist at any level of an organization. Bullies can be superiors, subordinates, and colleagues.

Exists: in the home, the school, and the workplace. If an environment does not uphold high standards for the way people treat each other, then bullying may be more likely and/or prevalent. Bullying is a real problem in nursing and can become a major issue if it’s ignored or unchecked. It can lead to a loss of valuable human capital and medical errors.

Acknowledge: that bullying may be a problem in your organization. Nurse leaders should talk about bullying and encourage staff to speak up and be heard if it does happen. The more it’s acknowledged, the more you can do about it. Leaders that minimize its impact or deny its existence create a culture of silence that impedes solutions to this problem.

Watch: for the signs of the bullying throughout the workplace. Be sure supervisors and managers know how to recognize the signs of bullying. Don’t wait for it to be brought to your attention.

Act: when you notice signs of bullying by directly intervening, and /or getting help. Bullies lose their power when people stop passively accepting their behavior. Refuse to be a silent bystander. It is everyone’s responsibility to have the courage to play a key role to prevent and stop bullying. Get involved and take a stand against this issue.

Reflect: on the incident and your action. Reflect on what was perceived to go wrong and start to reflect on what worked well, and why. Analyzing the incident may help you to:

 “reflect-on-action” (past experience),

 “reflect-in-action” (as an incident happens), and

 “reflect-for-action” (actions you may wish to take in future experiences).

Empower: staff to collectively and safely respond to bullying they see and hear. Create a mechanism for staff to confidentially report bullying issues in the workplace without fear of retaliation.

… and Care

You might find some more help with your project where I found the info above (scroll down to the bottom, and on the right you'll see Truth, Wisdom, Courage, etc. Each contains fact sheets, assessments, etc.

Civility Tool-kit: Resources to Empower Nurse Leaders to Identify, Intervene, and Prevent Workplace Bullying

Home - Stop Bullying Tool-Kit

Some statistics related to bullying in nursing:

 Bullying decreases job satisfaction and morale and increases absenteeism (Chipps & McRury, 2012)

 Almost 21% of nursing turnover can be related to bullying (Johnson & Rea, 2009)

 60% of new RNs who quit their first job in nursing within 6 months report that it is because of being bullied

 Replacing one nurse can cost up to $88,000 USD (Jones, CB, 2012)

 According to a study by the US Bureau of National Affairs, there is a loss of productivity of $5-6 billion/year in the US due to bullying in the workplace

 In a study on workplace bullying, most of the respondents reported being bullied by the charge nurse, manager, or director (Johnson & Rea 2009)

 One in six nurses (13%) reported being bullied in the past six months (Sa & Fleming 2008)

 Bullying of nurses leads to erosion of professional competence as well as increased sickness, absence, and employee attrition (Hutchinson et al., 2010; Johnson, 2009)

 Bullying victims may suffer stress-related health problems, such as nausea, headache, insomnia, anxiety, depression, weight changes, and alcohol and drug abuse (Townsend, 2012)

 Nurses who survive bullying early in their careers tend to carry their learned behaviors with them. They accept the bully culture as part of the job and eventually may choose to bully other nurses (Townsend, 2012)

 The Joint Commission (2008) acknowledges that unresolved conflict and disruptive behavior can adversely affect safety and quality of care

Specializes in Trauma, Teaching.

along the theme of eating: Educate, don't eviscerate!

Question-

Assuming bullying is a genuine problem:

Is there any reason to think that education, or a phrase will have a meaningful effect on the behavior?

Sometimes it seems that well meaning attempts at changing behaviors sometimes has the opposite effect. It can cause polarization, and make people dig in their heels.

I am curious- are you modeling your program after a proven program, or starting from scratch?

I see this subject come up a lot. I am wondering if any organization has measured the behavior, and the results of any interventions.

Specializes in ER.

I've been told this in different words at least fifty times, but it took me years to really understand. If you want someone's behavior to change you must show respect and a positive regard as you point out what needs to be worked on. Preface a statement with, "you probably didn't know, but..." or "you do xx so well, but can you add..." It works.

Unfortunately, there are always nurses in the ER that will eat their young. New nurses need to ask questions in order to gain competence...and be thankful when you can call any of your co-workers "kind mentors" and they do exist! As for the "bully" nurses, it takes time to win them over. As cliche as it is, you have to earn your stripes. Your co-workers and the providers will gain respect for you as situations arise. Once you have earned the confidence of your cohorts, the whole picture changes (it may take a year to accomplish this). I speak from experience, the bullies have now turned the corner in my ER world and things are looking up. A word of advice to newbies...ask your questions regardless of feeling stupid (everyone feels dumb from time to time), be helpful with your coworkers, be the person who will jump in and make a difference during any given shift, ignore the mean ones...they will come around in time.

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