set up how do i proceed to work with these people

[RNOTODAY, BSN, RN]

How do you handle working witha scrub tech that you do not get along with, plus, whom is not above lying about you and reporting you.

without getting into details,there is a huge attitude problem with this one surgical tech, and she reported me , along with another nurse ( who is the sister of another nurse who is a *PROBLEM*...Resulted in me being counselled about this by a manager, a patient services manager, and the two people, plus the original scrub tech that was involved in the case. I dont believe i did anything wrong, with the exception of go to lunch. long story short, there were NO raytechs being used in this case, and when I got back from lunch, there was a big deal about raytecs being found in the garbage!!! so counts were wrong, the scrub tech LIED and said she gave me raytecs to get them off her field, and "she continued to do her job " and doesnt know what i "did" with the raytecs. i have a great memory, and believe me, there were no raytecs given to me from the field, and if they ever were, i know better than my name even during the busiest cases not to throw them in the trash!!!!

I am beside myself. I try my best to help others out, would never lie about another co worker, despite my feelings for her/him....

I was just "counselled" had a convo with the people involved, and assured I WASNT GOING TO BE TERMINATED.

No harm to a patient was done, this was not an open case. an xray was taken, negative.

words of advise? wiasm how should I handle these co workers of mine? i wil probably look bad if i request not to work with them again, right? nobody believes there were no raytecs when i left for lunch. I thought i had no real enemies where i worked, but i am really wrong. how do i proceed? i know in managements eyes, its over, tho i am positive they are keeping a close eye on my counting practices now, since this tech said "this has happened before with her" which is a lie, because this is the first time i am hearing about it.

just feeling really , i dont know, screwed right now. please, newbies and vets...please give some advice.....

ps, just an aside note...this particular tech is at least 15 minutes late coming to the room to set up all the time, i mean all the time.... i dont report her, because basically, i am not a "reporter" i have a sense of loyalty to my coworkers, even if i dont really care for them personally---- would you, as a nurse, strt reporting on her every little infraction she makes, no matter how small she is lazy as he day is long, puts on gown and gloves, and barks to the circulator to get her stuff she should have been helping get.

i left work in tears. i believe i was completely set up, and i cant say that to managers, because really, who are they gonna believe? they are going to believe who went to them first about this "incident" period.

help i just want to quit and never come back

[Argo]

Write her up. Continue to write her up until she folds or gets fired.

[RNOTODAY, BSN, RN]

thank you, i dont usually write people up, but aftter the day i had today, i am going to.

[RNOTODAY, BSN, RN]

another question. i wouldnt spit on this girl if she was on fire. but i know she is going to carry on as usual, try to talk small talk, say hello in passing, etc.... can i get disciplined for just ignoring her?

this issue i have went way back to my first day there when my first encounter with her was "girl im talking to you, can you hear me? in the snottiest tone ever. i will admit that was it for her. if someone says salt, she says sugar, if you open a bottle of 500 saline, its "oh give me 300" a million minutia filled things are part of her repertoire. now lying is one of them.

[solneeshka, BSN, RN]

I know this is the pat answer that everyone here seems to give for every answer, but I would be looking to work elsewhere. At least on a different service from this person. I worked with poison like this on my last job, a snotty unit secretary who started pulling crap along these lines (jeopardizing my license to get "even" with me for things like, oh, politely requesting that she do something that's her job - I mean, this woman was nuts). I didn't realize just how deep the stress was that she caused until I changed jobs and it was like heaven opened up before me. I'm thrilled every day that I don't have to work with her! People like that are more rare than you might think. There are difficult people anywhere you go, but most places don't have people who will set you up to try to get you fired.

[RogueRN]

I'm so sorry that you're going through this. As someone who used to work in HR, I would DOCUMENT, DOCUMENT, DOCUMENT her behavior and include exact quotes on what she said. Always act as professional as possible. It will just make her look like the jerk that she is. Don't ignore her, just speak to her as if she is a psych patient (which is how she is behaving). What I mean is, speak in a calm manner and kill her with kindness. This will absolutely drive her crazy. Believe me, it works (from personal experience). Plus, you can't be accused as being unprofessional.

Do you have someone, like the nurse educator, that you can talk to about these issues? Perhaps if you find someone in an administrative capacity to talk to, they can better direct you on how to handle the politics of the environment. If not, I would make a phone call to HR and they can advise on you on next steps. Be sure that you have your documentation handy. You have a right not to be harassed on the job.

I really think you need to consider stepping up and talking to management. How are they going to know what you are going through if you don't speak up? And how many other nurses will have to put up with this behavior from this tech? It costs hospitals to hire and train new people. Do you think they would be happy if you and other RNs leave? No!

I recently went through a similar situation. As an experienced OR nurse, I felt that I could put up with a lot as an orientee. I had no qualms letting the management know about challenging staff members. What was completely disappointing was the fact that they did not hold people accountable for their behavior, which is what proliferates it. That being the case, I left that job and have not regretted it.

There may come a time when the best thing to do is leave. You'll know when the time comes. In the meantime, act professionally, take notes, and stand up for yourself!

Good luck...

[FlyOR]

How much experience and what kind do you have? The reason I am asking is there is one fact here: OR nurses take a long time to train. They aren't just laying around out there. I realize that no one likes to look for another job and hates leaving a job under duress, but frankly, this person could be very dangerous to your psyche, concentration, your license and your professional reputation. This is exactly the kind of environment JCHAO recognizes as dangerous to patients.

I agree with the other posters, document, document, document and as much as possible talk out loud so the team can hear you: " Sally Sue we have ten ray techs, two blades, three bovie tips yada yada is that accurate?" If you get no response hold up the case for a verbal confirmation from her. She'll end up looking like an idiot or she'll verify / not.

Everything you do with this person I would try to verbalilze and make clear, other than that I wouldn't engage her and I would look for another job. When you're ready, in your exit interview you can tell management why and how they lost a good nurse.

Life is too short to deal with this kind of misery at work.

[Future O.R. Nurse]

I would suggest that maybe between cases, grab a quick snack. Do not take a lunch break in the middle of a case. I think so many things can go wrong and you can be blamed for when working with difficult people. If you started the case, finish it! Had you done that, the question of raytecs would never have come up. I have been through the same thing. I went to lunch in the middle of a case and the person behind me left a raytec in the patient, and I got blamed for it! I was only about a week in as a surg-tech. After that, I never went to lunch in the middle of a case.

[RNOTODAY, BSN, RN]

thank you all for advice and encouragement. nothing of this nature has ever happened to me before, and i am so confused about it all. it sad to know that we work with vindictive people. but i did know this, i just had not been the "victim" of it til now.... but seriously, im considering not going to lunch during a case, period. this is really affecting me.

i guess the bottom line is that the patient wasnt harmed, not even close, and the case went well. even the surgeon was rolling his eyes at how these two were carrying on.

[NurseLumpia]

I would suggest that maybe between cases, grab a quick snack. Do not take a lunch break in the middle of a case. I think so many things can go wrong and you can be blamed for when working with difficult people. If you started the case, finish it! Had you done that, the question of raytecs would never have come up. I have been through the same thing. I went to lunch in the middle of a case and the person behind me left a raytec in the patient, and I got blamed for it! I was only about a week in as a surg-tech. After that, I never went to lunch in the middle of a case.

That is a different way of seeing things, but, at times unreasonable...

I say this because there are cases where it can take over 7 hours plus! So, what I am saying is, the last thing you ate would be before the day starts (0630) then the next thing you eat is at 1500. That is unreasonable.

[Tiffany, RN, BSN]

Little tricks like this have been played on me before and the only thing you can do is CYA. If you must leave the room during a case, make sure you give a FULL AND DETAILED REPORT to the nurse coming in. Document everything that goes on in the case when you're with that tech and do not let your guard down. It sucks working with people like that but the only thing you can do is be on your toes and know your stuff. Then nobody can mess with ya, lol.

As far as interactions with the tech outside of cases, you're not obligated to. I would only discuss work and if she made an attempt at small talk, I would just ignore her.

Also, have you tried talking to her and asking her why she lied about the situation?

[Scrubby]

would you, as a nurse, strt reporting on her every little infraction she makes, no matter how small she is lazy as he day is long, puts on gown and gloves, and barks to the circulator to get her stuff she should have been helping get.

Yes if someone did this to me I'd be coming down on them like a ton of bricks. Are you supervising this technician? I don't understand how it works with techs because thankfully we just have nurses in the OR and a clear heirarchy. If you are supervising them and it sounds to me like you have the responsibility for the count and not her then it's time to put her in her place.

If someone want to play games with me in my theatre I can play games as well. Next time she's scrubbed get a witness to watch your count and clarify exactly what is on the field. Make it clear that she's not trustworthy and you do not wish for another incident.