Addressing doctors by their first names

veteranRN · Sep 30, 2004

I know I am absolutely in the minority here but in the military we always addressed someone by their rank since it was something they earned. I feel physicians are the same way. If at all in a place of employment then they should be addressed as Dr. If outside work then that is a different story.

trauma_junkie1 · Sep 30, 2004

I'm not sure what the basis for this stupid rule is. I do know from the diggin we've done that it comes straight from NURSING managment in the ED. This is NOT from higher up and (to the best that we can determine) NOT from any of the docs. Hell, we even call the chair by his first name. Most of them will stop new folks if they call them Doctor So-and-so and will say, "call me John (or Jane, we do have a good number of female docs :-)

Here's some more examples of the rules. We're not allowed to cover our last names on our badges. I've never worried about it, but I'm a big guy. Most of the women cover theirs to avoid stalkers and the like. We've had problems with everything from nurses who get hit on RELENTLESSLY (I one time had to pretend this one nurse was my wife so this guy would leave her alone!) to people who get pissed off because they can't get the drug they seek. Some have even called the ED later and threatened the staff. But, we can't cover our last names to prevent stalking because it's....that's right "unprofessional."

One of my favorites, "There is never a reason to be rube to a patient." Now, if this was casually enforced, ok. But, I'm sorry, the naked drunk at three in the morning who is masturbating in bed and making crude remarks to every woman in site NEEDS to be told to sit the hell down and shut the hell up. I kid you not. That nurse was written up for being rude to a patient.

One of our nurses actually photocopied the memo and shrunk it down so that she could tape it to the back of her badge so as to always have it to refer to in order to know how to behave.

Save us from management!

mattsmom81 · Sep 30, 2004

This is just another way of keeping nurses under their thumb...they don't want us getting too familiar or comfortable on the job or they might lose power.

In front of patients I address doctors appropriately. When we are away from the patient and he/she prefers first name, I will then use it.

What kinda bothers me here is why is it OK for patients, staff and everyone to refer to US by first name...seems it would be more 'professional' for me to be addressed as 'Nurse Jones' as well, eh? I believe it overfamiliarizes to address by first name in professional settings with patient relationships, personally.

And I wouldn't mind being addressed as 'Nurse Jones' by docs, patients, etc by the way...it might help with public perception of our status as professionals. Particularly with so many hospital employees in scrubs today. When I first started out in nursing, we were addressed in this way for a short time til things relaxed a bit. Course we also wore caps and dress whites...

missmercy · Sep 30, 2004

I'd feel weird calling a Dr. by his first name.

Me too - :rolleyes: - one might think the docs are actually "human" or "normal people"!

I agree that we need to be professional -- and i guess if the Drs were offended by being called by their given names - and if they complained -- then I suppose it needs to be spelled out how they are to be addressed. I can't imagin our administration making it an official offense -- writing people up for it?! WOW!

Maybe we should just address them all as "your mighty excellency" or "Great and powerful one" -- if egos need that much bolstering.:rotfl:

trauma_junkie1 · Sep 30, 2004

Me too - - one might think the docs are actually "human" or "normal people"!
I agree that we need to be professional -- and i guess if the Drs were offended by being called by their given names - and if they complained -- then I suppose it needs to be spelled out how they are to be addressed. I can't imagin our administration making it an official offense -- writing people up for it?! WOW!
Maybe we should just address them all as "your mighty excellency" or "Great and powerful one" -- if egos need that much bolstering.:rotfl:

I just want to emphasize that NOT ONE doc I've talked to has given two hoots in hell about being called by their first names. We have some of the best docs around and they treat all nurses as colleagues and not servents. This is definitley NOT coming from them. This is all coming from our "fellow nurses" in management.

I certainly wouldn't want to be responsible for adding fuel to the docs vs nurses war!

BadBird, BSN, RN · Sep 30, 2004

Just another useless administrative policy, probably many work hours and committees to come up with such a waste of time. I sometimes think that all management should put on scrubs and work all shifts so they understand the "real" picture of what they are administering.

RN Rotten Nurse · Sep 30, 2004

I've got a question for you all:
I work in a busy ED and we recently recieved a memo from our management stating that we had a new "Code of Conduct." Among other things (soem of which make good sense and some of which are rediculous) one of the new "standards" is that we (nursing staff) are to always address physicians by "Dr. Smith" instead of "John" (example...).
Now, when talking to patients, I refer to doctors this way, but when talking to the doctors, I use first names. We're all friends, it's a tight knit group. Even the doctors have said, "that's dumb, don't call me that." Our feeling is that this is an example of managment that is out of touch. (Most of our docs don't have any clue who the managers are and these are people who have GREAT relationships with the nurses!)
I can't think of any other profession that would be asked to do that. Doctors don't call each other "Dr" if they're close friends. I'm not talking about docs that we don't know, faculty consultants. I'm talking about our own ER residents! We will actually be written up if management hears us call them by their first name, citing that it's "unprofessional."
Am I nuts here?

It's the same way where I work. We're expected to call them 'doctor' and last name. I don't mind though. However, there are one or two that I would like to address by another name. ehehe.

hipab4hands · Sep 30, 2004

Me too - - one might think the docs are actually "human" or "normal people"!
Or we could go back to the old title of "medical diety"
I agree with the others, if the docs are going to be addressed as Dr. _______, o then I want the same level of respect , and be addressed as Nurse ______. by both the docs and management.

cursenurse · Oct 1, 2004

This is just another way of keeping nurses under their thumb...they don't want us getting too familiar or comfortable on the job or they might lose power.
In front of patients I address doctors appropriately. When we are away from the patient and he/she prefers first name, I will then use it.
What kinda bothers me here is why is it OK for patients, staff and everyone to refer to US by first name...seems it would be more 'professional' for me to be addressed as 'Nurse Jones' as well, eh? I believe it overfamiliarizes to address by first name in professional settings with patient relationships, personally.
And I wouldn't mind being addressed as 'Nurse Jones' by docs, patients, etc by the way...it might help with public perception of our status as professionals. Particularly with so many hospital employees in scrubs today. When I first started out in nursing, we were addressed in this way for a short time til things relaxed a bit. Course we also wore caps and dress whites...

i agree with this so wholeheartedly! i believe that the way that nursing is perceived by the public has so much to do with the fact that they don't have to use a title of respect when addressing us. i once read in a nursing issues/trends book that one of the ways to raise the public perception of nursing was to stop addressing ourselves and each other by first names. i have changed from offering my first name to pt's instead choosing to introduce myself by saying "my name is ms smith, i am your nurse." i think that when pt's have to "put a handle on it" as the old folks used to say, they are a little more respectful and less likely to treat you like you are "the help." another thing is that we often address the pt by mr or ms, why should they then be allowed to address us by first name? to me that conveys a total lack of respect for me as a professional and as an adult.

to the o.p. i think that within earshot of pt's everyone should be mr/ms or dr/nurse in order to preserve professionalism. if dr's and nurses want to address each other by first names away from pt's what difference does it make? it seems that your management should have other things to worry about.

NeuroICURN · Oct 1, 2004

i agree with this so wholeheartedly! i believe that the way that nursing is perceived by the public has so much to do with the fact that they don't have to use a title of respect when addressing us. i once read in a nursing issues/trends book that one of the ways to raise the public perception of nursing was to stop addressing ourselves and each other by first names. i have changed from offering my first name to pt's instead choosing to introduce myself by saying "my name is ms smith, i am your nurse." i think that when pt's have to "put a handle on it" as the old folks used to say, they are a little more respectful and less likely to treat you like you are "the help." another thing is that we often address the pt by mr or ms, why should they then be allowed to address us by first name? to me that conveys a total lack of respect for me as a professional and as an adult.
to the o.p. i think that within earshot of pt's everyone should be mr/ms or dr/nurse in order to preserve professionalism. if dr's and nurses want to address each other by first names away from pt's what difference does it make? it seems that your management should have other things to worry about.

Do you REALLY do that??? :uhoh3:

IMHO...I think it's petty bickering about something like being adressed as "Nurse _______" that keeps us from being taken seriously. Seriously here guys....there are much MORE important things to argue about than this!

As for calling MDs by their first name. Yes, I do it, but not when speaking to a pt.

ollikristiina · Oct 1, 2004

hello

That sounds wierd... Ofcours if you work closely with someone you becom friends. And when you are friends you don't call your friend doctor or so. Ofcours we have to be proessional and polite with people we don't know and infront of our patients. But that is different. Sometimes it can be faster to call doctors with their first names.

We usually pressent us to the patients with our first names and call our patients with their first names. Ofcours we have to follow the culture of the country we work in but a new "cultural action" can not be forced to anyone. I think the managers of a ward should concider this when they make new rules. And as long the patients get the correct treatment it doesn't matter if we call the doctors by their first names

RN4NICU, LPN, LVN · Oct 1, 2004

If I have to call them Doctor, then they have to call me Supreme NICU Goddess. :rolleyes:

I agree it is an absolutely absurd thing for management to pick on. I would not stand for being treated like a child - and what else can it be called? Physicians are "Dr. XYZ", patients are "Mr/Mrs. ABC", but nurses are "first name" -- just like children. :uhoh3: