[micro]

mattsmom81,

you are so right.......there is a pecking order.........have scars from my chick years myself.......hehehehehe
and yes daily there is pecking that goes on.......but you gotta know to peck and not to peck.......
but there is outright abuse and bullying that goes on in the workplace.........and it does start with the person in the mirror.....

***are you the instigator.....then stop it
***are you the target.....then stop being the target
***see it happening to somebody else.....stand with them until they can rise above it.........and then take measures to stop the worksite onslaught.....

our days in nursing is hard enough without gradeschool behavior occuring and being allowed to occur,

mattsmom81,
totally agree with the points you made.....
a pecking order is k'.........way to grow and survive.....
but.......and there is a difference..........

micro

love snoopy when snoopy is a vulture

[Ange]

Being a nurse coming into the field I would have to say that older nurses do tend to "eat" the young ones. Too many times I have seen the older nurses blame, ridicule, and take out their bad moods on younger, new nurses. Not saying that all "older" nurses are like this, but talking from experience I have seen a great deal of it. Especially when it comes to student nurses. Just a reminder to all nurses, young and old alike, you were there once, it was difficult, but is that any reason to to make it even more difficult for the ones currently in training?

Ange

[mattsmom81]

Lisa, you make a good point about young nurses needing a thicker skin. This is not a profession for sissies, for sure...

We go into this profession to help others, and we find a difficult environment with many unsupportive people to deal with....we toughen up fast or don't survive.

It's a jungle out there...LOL!

[rnoflabor2000]

I've eaten alot of strange things, but never my young? This is an odd statement.rrrrrr

[obtnt]

As we can see from this discussion, this is an accurate observation on our profession. I think the reasons are varied though and difficult to analyze. I have experienced this behavior too. I agree that dr's certainly don't treat each other this way!! Maybe nurses are dumb to their actions but we need to be organized and supportive, especially in these difficult days! I think we are sometimes insecure in our enviroment and this "feeding behavior" is some sort of security??? All I know for certain is this is only making our careers, reputations, and lives, more difficult when we need to be supportive and in solidarity. Please think about your behavior with new nurses, either new to the unit or new grads. I know it can be difficult to "break in" a new nurse and do your work too. Just try to take a minute and think things through before you react. We MUST start to make positive changes for our future!

As one of my nursing instructors once said "S--t runs downhill"

[sophiemaecat]

When I started nursing school a zillion years ago, even then our instructors were warning us about this old,but true mantra. If there wasn't a grain of truth to it, then it wouldn't be so upsetting to all of us. Like all new grads, I didn't know what I didn't know until my first "real" job, and had my share of the burnt out, older, crabby nurses who had forgotten what it was like to be just starting out. Fortunately, and I thank God for this, there were several wonderful experienced nurses who welcomed our new group to the unit and forgave us for being young and dumb. Since that time I have always tried to remember that and treat my orientees with calmness and grace and not be remembered as an old grouchy nurse that snacked on the new people for lunch. I know were all tired, busy and worn out, but remembering the golden rule never hurt anybody.

[NancyRN]

YES! And I'm an "old new" nurse. I am NOT inexperienced in the "real world", having raised four children before going back to school to become a nurse. I've worked at other jobs and have never been bullied in this manner. I have a naturally quiet nature and an unnaturally soft voice which makes them really seem to go after me. I have a friend from nursing school who has a delightful Goldie Hawn type of personality. She seems ditzy but in reality was a straight A student with a heart of gold. She lasted 3 weeks in a hospital and now works nights in a nursing home "hiding out." What a waste of talent!

Nurses run the nursing schools, and even though we need nurses desperately, there is no nurturing at that level. When I got breast cancer during my second year and had to take a quarter off for chemo and radiation, all I got from them was "you'll have to go back to the beginning of the (2 year) waiting list to get back in." I cried more over that than I did over my diagnosis. The only sympathy I got was from my little Goldie friend who told me tearfully, "If you lose your hair, I'll shave my head!" (remember, this nurse is not available in hospitals; she's been run out.)

It seems to be worst during report. When I was new 2 years ago the others seemed to take a sadistic delight in spewing forth terms I didn't understand, using acronyms even they didn't understand. I had the last laugh many times by asking "what's THAT mean?" only to find out the bully wasn't sure. Ha!

Two years into the game, I still dread giving and getting report, but I'm learning. One nurse spoke so fast I couldn't write it down. After asking her three times to please slow down, I finally got up, saying, "this report is useless to me."

I went out into the hallways to find a young nurse in tears because of that same nurse's bullying. She quit the next week, and guess what? The hospital is calling all the time crying about how short handed they are. What a surprise!

[KlareRN]

I agree that we not only eat our young...but our peers and elders. In my career I have seen new nurses ignored, tricked, and made fun of. I am embarrassed for the behavior of so many. Those that stand around and complain of being "short staffed" are the same ones that will say right in front of a new orientee that "I don't have time to train anyone and I am not going to do it". Consequently the new ones are uncomfortable and sometimes leave on break and never return. I remember how insecure I felt as a new grad and thank goodness I had a mentor who was patient, kind, and had a sense of humor. I do not think that many nurses are helping with the shortage. Yes- we as a whole do eat our young...and those individuals should be ashamed of themselves.

[mdslabod]

Nurses kill their own and eat thier young.
Very true.

I wore my nursing cap in to work last week.
I was torn apart by my co-workers.

Point made.

MicheleRN