I've got a couple of burrs under my saddle blanket and am requesting feedback from the allnurses community regarding professional behaviors:
I believe:
Someone should be referred to with their title of Ms, Mrs, Mr, Dr, etc. and their surname until permission is granted otherwise.
Profanity in professional situations is rarely acceptable and if so used, should be in consensual agreement, e.g. "May I speak frankly?"
It gets my goat how some believe they have the freedom to address another or use language that is not becoming to a professional relationship.
My wife, medical nurse Belinda, told me that at Anomaly Memorial Hospital the staff are encouraged to refer to the patients by their first names because it comes across as being more friendly.
In reading some articles on the internet, profanity is condoned and supported in some professional situations because it "releases tension".
"Bullhockey!" say I.
In my experiences, respect is received, even with Salt-of-the-Earth Psychotics, by giving them respect. And that respect, reinforced, has prevented escalating patients from experiencing total meltdowns: The statement, "I expect you to give me the same respect I give you" has caused many an angry patient to take pause.
I think of the multitude of smiles I've received, asking a patient, "May I call you...?" Or: "What would you like to be called?"
Profanity is rarely necessary in a professional situation. The use of profanity can be a sign of loss of control, or apathy. I hear profanity from an acquaintance as their way of saying, "I can say whatever I want with no regard to you".
I truly enjoy using euphemisms to say the vilest thing in the sweetest, most respectful way. Forms of the word "imprudent" has become one of my favs as of late: "You can't fix imprudence" sounds so much more respectful than the mainstream saying. Or: "How imprudent of administration to do that!"
Euphemisms help to take the focus of how something is said and puts the focus on what is said.
Specializes in Psych (25 years), Medical (15 years).
On 3/9/2020 at 1:54 AM, Davey Do said:
I later heard, from a very good source who had worked as a house supervisor, Clark had gone into Mia's office and told on me.
I'm not sure why I didn't just didn't mention the "very good source" as being Jason Hiney RN.
Mia was in her office Sunday night, surprise surprise, because of a restraint incident, perhaps sentinel, which had occurred in ER. She had called Jason down to her office Sunday night and had a talk with him which lasted over an hour. The talk partially involved the restraint policy and Clark's telling on me.
The subject of who can legitimately, and I guess legally, stop a restraint came up. Mia made the premise that anybody can start or stop a restraint. Jason argued that this was not true, as he had read the mental health codes which state that the RN is the one with the authority.
As Jason relayed this information to me, he made the point that he believed he had won the argument and had convinced Mia. So, I did some searching through the Illinois Mental Health Codes and found a statute that I believe supports Jason's argument.
Just for poops & giggles, I made this and faxed it to Wrongway's administrative psych division:
They'll know who it's from, as my name and phone number are automatically printed on the received fax.
Specializes in Psych (25 years), Medical (15 years).
On 3/9/2020 at 1:54 AM, Davey Do said:
I got a correspondence from Rita, the corporate HR administrator, last week on my personal email basically saying she wanted to discuss this situation regarding the profanity and shift report incident. Now, Rita was the HR manager in March 2017 who dropped the ball on a grievance I had toward the psych division director.
I responded to Rita saying that, at my age, I stay on a MN schedule and requested a telephone conference.
Rita emailed me today, well, yesterday really:
"Good morning Dave. Thank you for responding. Can we speak at 7:30am or 8:00am on Thursday morning?"
I emailed her back:
"Yes, thank you, I will be available during those times at 867-5309."
The word balloons contain direct quotes from my initial email sent to the director on January 18, 2020.
Well, technically speaking the manual does state that RNs have the authority but it doesnt state that ONLY RNs have the authority so maybe they need to be more specific, though it should be obvious to admin that you should not have any ole Yahoo going in and taking off restraints, but then again we are talking about admin.
Continued luck in this episode of how the world turns DaveyDo...
As an Air Force wife, I worked in many parts of the country in my early days. Yes, it is often a cultural thing, and not a sign of disrespect. For example, in Hawaii, many women of authority are referred to as "Auntie". While we were stationed there, my children had many Aunties in the community, and I heard the title used a lot on the hospital floor. Many areas of the south do the same with Mama, Papa, and Baby. I have been called Baby by many adults, and never felt it was a sign of disrespect. There are many areas in the country where folks will see you as aloof if you refer to them by their surname. In those cases, Ms Betty or Mr Tom seem more appropriate. When HIPPAA first hit health care, I was designated compliance officer at the Health Department where I worked. We were given guidelines to call patients from the waiting room by their first names for privacy. You just have to roll with the flow.
But I definitely agree with the poster. While I do respect cultural differences, we are professionals. Profanity is never OK in a work setting. I have had many physicians with whom I am on first-name basis, but I would never address them as other than "Dr ---" in the workplace. Many invite patients to address staff by their first name by printing first name only on name badges. That really bothered me when I was younger, but not now. I have a name that is difficult for many to pronounce, so I would rather be called by my first name. Oh, the lessons we have learned.
As an Air Force wife, I worked in many parts of the country in my early days. Yes, it is often a cultural thing, and not a sign of disrespect. For example, in Hawaii, many women of authority are referred to as "Auntie". While we were stationed there, my children had many Aunties in the community, and I heard the title used a lot on the hospital floor. Many areas of the south do the same with Mama, Papa, and Baby. I have been called Baby by many adults, and never felt it was a sign of disrespect. There are many areas in the country where folks will see you as aloof if you refer to them by their surname. In those cases, Ms Betty or Mr Tom seem more appropriate. When HIPPAA first hit health care, I was designated compliance officer at the Health Department where I worked. We were given guidelines to call patients from the waiting room by their first names for privacy. You just have to roll with the flow.
But I definitely agree with the poster. While I do respect cultural differences, we are professionals. Profanity is never OK in a work setting. I have had many physicians with whom I am on first-name basis, but I would never address them as other than "Dr ---" in the workplace. Many invite patients to address staff by their first name by printing first name only on name badges. That really bothered me when I was younger, but not now. I have a name that is difficult for many to pronounce, so I would rather be called by my first name. Oh, the lessons we have learned.
That's not just a cultural shift based on a preference to be more casual, it's a cultural shift based on safety. Unless you have a unique first name it's a lot more difficult for somebody you'd rather not engage with outside of work to track you down. I'd rather only have my first name on my badge given the option than face the possibility of a patient or family member that is overly familiar or angry for whatever reason finding me outside of work.
Specializes in Psych (25 years), Medical (15 years).
18 hours ago, Daisy4RN said:
Well, technically speaking the manual does state that RNs have the authority but it doesnt state that ONLY RNs have the authority so maybe they need to be more specific
For purposes of clarity, I edited the statute, Daisy. Others are specifically designated, such as "...the physician, clinical psychologist, clinical social worker, or registered nurse..."
Hearsay is: Mia deemed others to have the power of ending a restraint due to nurses leaving patients longer than necessary. So, instead of counselling the specific nurse and setting things straight, administration does its knee-jerk reflex and attempts to make a blanket rule to cover every situation.
Jason explained to Mia that allowing others to have authority to end restraints is illegal- her action is illegal as it goes against mental health statutes.
I faxed the caricature of Clark and his erroneous proclamation with the quoted mental health statute in order to drive home the legality point. I could have typed out a nice, professional business letter, but dagnabit, it communicates what I wanted to convey and I enjoyed the process of creating that little piece of artwork!
Davey Do
10,666 Posts
I'm not sure why I didn't just didn't mention the "very good source" as being Jason Hiney RN.
Mia was in her office Sunday night, surprise surprise, because of a restraint incident, perhaps sentinel, which had occurred in ER. She had called Jason down to her office Sunday night and had a talk with him which lasted over an hour. The talk partially involved the restraint policy and Clark's telling on me.
The subject of who can legitimately, and I guess legally, stop a restraint came up. Mia made the premise that anybody can start or stop a restraint. Jason argued that this was not true, as he had read the mental health codes which state that the RN is the one with the authority.
As Jason relayed this information to me, he made the point that he believed he had won the argument and had convinced Mia. So, I did some searching through the Illinois Mental Health Codes and found a statute that I believe supports Jason's argument.
Just for poops & giggles, I made this and faxed it to Wrongway's administrative psych division:
They'll know who it's from, as my name and phone number are automatically printed on the received fax.