Don't yell at co-workers in front of people

Nurses Relations

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I just want to remind everyone, don't yell at co-workers, esp in front of patients and/or families, or anyone else.

I actually know of a physician who lost it in a room and was dismissed. You will make permanent enemies by doing this. If others witness your tirade, they will be also be witnesses when people go to your boss and file a complaint. They will probably even exaggerate.

One time, years ago, I filed a complaint against a nurse anesthetist who directed a totally undeserved tirade against me because I had, according to our protocol, called him in the night. He had a history of temper tantrums. He came in in the morning and went ballistic at the nurses station. The hospital investigated. Don't know what ensued with that, other than that he was gone within months.

So, keep your cool!

I had a manager who literally screamed at me in front of the ortho specialist's doing their morning rounds, patients and their families infact she just didn't care. the junior doctors on the floor would pull me aside when she left to make sure I was okay after the latest rant. families and patients wanted to know where they could put in a complaint about her (for the 10 mths I was there) Other staff just told me to stay away she was nothing but trouble. She even went off with the Director Nursing how poorly I worked and with no empathy or skills. I spent a lot of time in the toilet with other staff members trying to console me through her constant tirades. I was doing my first year and had to go interstate in order to get my hours so I stuck it out. The funny thing eventually was I'd done my first bed handover and who was standing their but the director. I went out to her and asked how I did. She replied with completely professional and great skills. My empathy was given at 100% I cared. the families would come in and ask to speak to the manager about my performance. I pointed her out and asked them to put it in writing.. In those 10 months I was asked to nurse a particular patient every day. The letters kept piling up, she ignored them. Just yelled even harder. In the end I collapsed, she was really happy not to have me on the floor. I resigned (had my hours) and have not been on a ward since. And have no desire whatsoever. I loved my career I was happy no violent patient was even a problem. Where to next?

Vet nursing (that is what they call us in my country) if they misbehave there is always a cage to put them in until they settle. Perhaps I will feel needed and regain confidence.

Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.

I made a mistake once not long ago, no harm to the patient. My supervisor ripped me apart in front of coworkers, our secretaries and even some patients, to the extent that the patients asked if I was ok and the secretaries berated me for my mistake.

CAN YOU SAY, INAPPROPRIATE? I was so upset that I did not trust myself to talk to her at the time. I took a few days to cool off, then behind closed doors in her office, I told her how wrong she was and that I felt it was unprofessional of her to do so. She but, but, butted me a few times, and I said there "ARE NO BUTS, YOU WERE WRONG". Then, she stopped a minute and apologized.

There is no justification for humiliating and embarrassing, let alone, jeopardizing the confidence of patients, to get a point across. She got the point by the time I was done with her.

4 Votes
Specializes in LTC Rehab Med/Surg.

If yelling occurs, it's always the MD. But even that has almost stopped. Rarely do I hear of rude behavior anywhere. I think we're all just getting too old.

I've never yelled at anyone at work. I get mad at my CNAs sometimes, but it almost never shows. Once I reprimanded a CNA in anger. I didn't yell, but my tone, my body language, my face radiated fury.

I considered them a friend and my complaint was legit, but I've regreted it ever since. I diminished them. I saw it in the look on their face, and I won't ever do it again. It gave me no pleasure. I didn't feel powerful. Ultimately it was I who felt less.

1 Votes

Last week I was extremely fatigued due to lack of sleep, consecutive assignments of "challenging" (to be diplomatic) patients, and crazy variable hours over four days in two cities. By day number four I was grumpy, exhausted, flustered and definitely not at my best.

After getting a raised eyebrow from the unit clerk, I realized I needed to go back and apologize to her for being a twit. I think most people "get" that this is hard work and we all have moments (or days) that we are not entirely proud of.

Specializes in burn ICU, SICU, ER, Trauma Rapid Response.
Last week I was extremely fatigued due to lack of sleep, consecutive assignments of "challenging" (to be diplomatic) patients, and crazy variable hours over four days in two cities. By day number four I was grumpy, exhausted, flustered and definitely not at my best.

After getting a raised eyebrow from the unit clerk, I realized I needed to go back and apologize to her for being a twit. I think most people "get" that this is hard work and we all have moments (or days) that we are not entirely proud of.

I think most of us recognize the difference between a co-worker who is having a really bad day, and the one who is always nasty. I think we all make allowences for those having a bad day since it happens to all of us.

I am 60 years old and have been an RN for 28 years. I just resigned from my job, stressful, because my supervisor keeps yelling at me in front of everybody. The last time I worked she yelled at me in the nurses station with witnesses because I sent her breastmilk home with a new mom when I discharged her. Her milk was right beside that patients milk, was unmarked, and it was a patient only frig. I get along great with everybody in that hospital, but this supervisor yells at me loudly in front of everybody every time we have a shift together. Now I'm out a job and have to find a new one. Too much stress for me and my husband. We rely on that insurance. I wish I could sew her!

Did you report her?

Yes but she is way more important than me. I am not ready to do ER on my own but have begged to be trained there. And she's a charge nurse and I'm not. So now I'm unemployed. No income and no insurance. Might go back into travel nursing. I did report her for yelling at me but I doubt it will make a difference for future employees that work there. They probably don't have the balls to even call her out for it.

Also because it’s traumatic for patients and families.

When I came in as a hospice nurse to see a patient at a SNF, the charge nurse there had some kind of beef with our hospice agency and was saying things in front of the patient like we didn’t send certain medications, didn’t provide an 02 concentrator, etc. etc. These things turned out not to be true. I didn’t argue with her in the room, I just quietly administered the medication that our hospice had supposedly failed to send while she berated me, found his 02 concentrator in a storage closet and set it up, etc. In this case, the patient had been there a long time and this nurse had a rapport with the wife, so the wife believed everything she said. This was five years ago and every time I think back to it I think how sad that the patient’s wife was under the impression that her husband was not cared for his last moments all because that other nurse wanted to prove that she was better or smarter in someway.

On 8/30/2019 at 10:40 AM, Karen Ries said:

I am 60 years old and have been an RN for 28 years. I just resigned from my job, stressful, because my supervisor keeps yelling at me in front of everybody. The last time I worked she yelled at me in the nurses station with witnesses because I sent her breastmilk home with a new mom when I discharged her. Her milk was right beside that patients milk, was unmarked, and it was a patient only frig. I get along great with everybody in that hospital, but this supervisor yells at me loudly in front of everybody every time we have a shift together. Now I'm out a job and have to find a new one. Too much stress for me and my husband. We rely on that insurance. I wish I could sew her!

I am so sorry that happened. What did she expect you to do? Throw the milk away?. It's her right to have that milk if she wants it.

They are cleaning house at the L&D where I work. Major bullying problem among the staff with high turnover and management has finally had enough. They did a mass interview and two problem nurses were fired and more are probably coming. Some people shouldn't work around babies and new mothers.

On 9/22/2019 at 7:33 PM, Jory said:

I am so sorry that happened. What did she expect you to do? Throw the milk away?. It's her right to have that milk if she wants it.

I think the supervisor had her milk in the patient fridge unlabeled and it was sent home w/ a patient. If I've I read that correctly, it makes the termination all the more ridiculous (although there is still the matter of sending unlabeled milk home with a patient). But I pretty much think this OP was terminated because the supervisor knew she herself had no business storing her unlabeled milk in the patient fridge and the OP's mistake made her (supervisor) look bad.

3 Votes
On 11/26/2014 at 5:51 PM, Bronte03 said:

I had a manager who literally screamed at me in front of the ortho specialist's doing their morning rounds, patients and their families infact she just didn't care. the junior doctors on the floor would pull me aside when she left to make sure I was okay after the latest rant. families and patients wanted to know where they could put in a complaint about her (for the 10 mths I was there) Other staff just told me to stay away she was nothing but trouble. She even went off with the Director Nursing how poorly I worked and with no empathy or skills. I spent a lot of time in the toilet with other staff members trying to console me through her constant tirades. I was doing my first year and had to go interstate in order to get my hours so I stuck it out. The funny thing eventually was I'd done my first bed handover and who was standing their but the director. I went out to her and asked how I did. She replied with completely professional and great skills. My empathy was given at 100% I cared. the families would come in and ask to speak to the manager about my performance. I pointed her out and asked them to put it in writing.. In those 10 months I was asked to nurse a particular patient every day. The letters kept piling up, she ignored them. Just yelled even harder. In the end I collapsed, she was really happy not to have me on the floor. I resigned (had my hours) and have not been on a ward since. And have no desire whatsoever. I loved my career I was happy no violent patient was even a problem. Where to next?

Vet nursing (that is what they call us in my country) if they misbehave there is always a cage to put them in until they settle. Perhaps I will feel needed and regain confidence.

If only we could put some of these animalistic people in cages, O well.

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