unprofessional behavior in RN community

Nurses Professionalism

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:nurse: I work in a small rural hospital in Nebraska,you would think the nurses here would be as professional as anywhere,or more so,wrong-wrong-wrong...we have some younger 22-30 year olds that use the f word and others I don't care to think of,at the drop of their hat..they nit-pick and make fun of others all the time...our unit manager is well aware of the problem and I think she may have had a few words with them but their behavior has not changed...does anyone out their have a solution???

In my nurses training we were taught that 1. NEVER talk about another nurse or MD

2.NEVER use foul language 3. your appearence is very important.....come on ladies this is not a hard list to follow,is it? Thanks for listening

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

Ah well, being direct and brutally honest is a start. setting limits VERY early on is also important. I am crystal-clear on what I will and will not tolerate and very upfront. It has worked for years now.

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

Also, another IMPORTANT THING, do NOT engage with these people. do NOT get emotional, angry, tearful whatever. Just be unemotional and crystal-clear how you expect to be treated. If they refuse to be reasonable, only deal with them as necessary. Other than that, have nothing to do with them. Do not get caught up in their games and do NOT let them project on you. It takes time, but you really DO teach others how to treat you.

Also, another IMPORTANT THING, do NOT engage with these people. do NOT get emotional, angry, tearful whatever. Just be unemotional and crystal-clear how you expect to be treated. If they refuse to be reasonable, only deal with them as necessary. Other than that, have nothing to do with them. Do not get caught up in their games and do NOT let them project on you. It takes time, but you really DO teach others how to treat you.

sorry people, i promise, this is my last question on this subject, since i have much to learn:

it's almost like you read me directly deb.

yes, i am one who would respond emotionally, specifically with indignancy.

and although i agree that you mustn't get dragged down in their games, unless this specific problem is nipped in the bud, these perpetrators will continue to destroy morale of their work environments as long as it is allowed by mgmt.

truly people, these passive/aggressive behaviors are so very dangerous.

often they will treat you as a camrade and then stab you in your back.

and yes, admittedly i am still feeling the sting of their venom.

it is hard for me to even be objective.

i am very much a proponent of zero tolerance in workplace negativism and truly wish mgmt. would follow suit.

but sadly, it is even in mgmt. that you will find said behaviors here also.

but yes deborah, one mustn't lose control of their emotions. i very much agree.

thank you.

Got a reply from this thread -no idea why as I never iniated one Mike

Here it is a year + later,I have been following your lead and it does work,when your busy being a good nurse you don't usually hear the "bad stuff". I would like to hear from some management folks,still need to know why you allow it,surely you have lost some good nurses over things like this. Miphillli

I had an interesting talk with my charge nurse once about a totally different topic. I had a rough shift and I wondered why. I didn't want to fill out a workload greivance with the union without talking to my charge nurse. I wanted to be fair. I mean, maybe it was me. She told me that I was a good nurse and I have improved by "leaps and bounds" in the two years I've been working there. The unfortunate thing was, I was often working with some RN's with bad attitudes and an inability to accept criticism (sorry, fer the bad spelling). So, they were setting a bad example for me. She named some RN's that were very good professional nurses and encouraged me to watch how they work. She also mentioned that these nurses are focused and don't talk a lot. They don't talk about other nurses because they are too busy doing their work. And they always are continuing their learning by sharing information and encouraging others.

So, it's interesting. A good nurse I guess will set the example for other nurses and the ones that want to improve will perhaps strive to be like them. So, that's what I've been doing. It's been making the job so much easier.

Nurse clown...................you are 110% right, you have a wise NM.

Specializes in Staff nurse.

...I wonder if those who use "colorful language" used it at an interview would be considered acceptable to hire.

Specializes in Med-Surg, Geriatric, Behavioral Health.
...I wonder if those who use "colorful language" used it at an interview would be considered acceptable to hire.

Yes, a crystal ball would be a nice thing...agreed.

Specializes in L&D.

I'll tell you what tho. I'd rather have a nurse who cussed over a back stabbing nurse anyday!!

i'll tell you what tho. i'd rather have a nurse who cussed over a back stabbing nurse anyday!!

:uhoh3: yep! you gotta watch out for those backstabbers!!! they're kind of irritating. i've been backstabbed myself. they're so nice to your face, then whammo!!! you're sitting across the desk from the manager.

i just prefer to let people know what i'm thinking. if i don't understand something, i'll say "i don't understand this". or if someone was gossiping, i say "are you sure about that? you better be sure about that. cuz that doesn't sound nice." sometimes, i just don't listen to it at all or change the subject. when i first started, one of the rn's reported to the manager that i left an empty piggyback i.v. bag at the bedside, instead of putting it in the garbage. i mean come on!! you wouldn't believe how much i pick up after the previous shift and i don't complain like that.

but then again, i've worked with some psw's that talk like truckers. and boy is it gross. i had to tell one to go away because her foul mouth was offensive. i hoped she didn't talk like that in front of the residences. next thing i know, one of the other psw's told me she talks like that all the time. i think that's rude.

Specializes in Neuro, Critical Care.
:nurse: I work in a small rural hospital in Nebraska,you would think the nurses here would be as professional as anywhere,or more so,wrong-wrong-wrong...we have some younger 22-30 year olds that use the f word and others I don't care to think of,at the drop of their hat..they nit-pick and make fun of others all the time...our unit manager is well aware of the problem and I think she may have had a few words with them but their behavior has not changed...does anyone out their have a solution???

In my nurses training we were taught that 1. NEVER talk about another nurse or MD

2.NEVER use foul language 3. your appearence is very important.....come on ladies this is not a hard list to follow,is it? Thanks for listening

On the floor I am doing clinicals on this semester we had a patient, 84 y/o M, slight dementia (in fact I talked to him all morning and didnt realize until I asked him what year it was and he said 1978, then the MD came in and confirmed it), CRF, Diabetes, HTN, etc.. Well he had a triple lumen catheter in his neck and he complained that it was hurting him so I asked his nurse what I should do...she said "is he still b#@tching about that?? OMG...well I might pull it later, what a Pain in the a$$", then I say, "oh well maybe ill tell him that we are going to pull it in a little bit. Then I thought better of it but before I could say that she says "Oh no don't tell crazy that, he'll never leave us alone".

I was dumbfounded for many reasons. She was an older nurse too. In fact she was the charge nurse and the only patient she had was mine. I was dumbfounded bc he wasn't "crazy" he was confused and he just wanted someone to listen to him. He said, "please just hold my hand, it feels good to hold someones hand"....uggh the nerve of some people. I just wish I could have done something for him, it was sooo sad. :crying2: he kept calling his wife begging her to come get him bc he just wants to sleep in his own bed...then he kept saying, "dont you love me anymore?"...

How could any nurse see this situation and still present herself in that manner???? UNPROFESSIONAL.

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