She's loud and outspoken. Markedly unattractive and overweight, in her mid 40s, she describes herself as having been in the ICU "forever." She's large and in charge, and everyone knows better than to argue with her because she's always right, and there's only way to do everything. An adult learner, she was a former waitress or CNA before "gettin' her RN" now attending an online-for profit school for her BSN or, more likely, refusing to further her education at all. She has been uplifted from a low income upbringing to "professional status" and for years has been drunk on an artificial sense of authority as an RN. Her particularly favorite hobbies include talking endlessly about her experience, describing the problems she has with "today's young nurses," and behaving rudely toward float nurses and travel nurses and medical interns just getting out of school because "they should know how to do all this without asking." She also makes frequent trips to the manager's office to pester and annoy.
I transitioned from my hospital's float pool to the medical ICU about 6 months ago, and we have one of these in my unit. I don't think I've ever met anyone with as rotten a personality as this individual. Luckily I have never been one of her targets.
"Anyone who takes a dump in the lounge bathroom is going to taste my shoe heel for a week! No one better be doing THAT." (Dictating the rules of the use of the staff bathroom, believing that any nurse or tech with the urge to empty their bowels need do so in a different part of the hospital)
"You could literally get FIRED for eating that. That's considered STEALING. That may have flown over on such and such floor, but not here!" (To a float nurse who didn't have time to break and took a package of two saltines to eat)
"Guys, you see that traveler Jen who started last week? She's always in her patients rooms, and you can never find her when you need help. It's because she has nothing to do so she stays in her patients rooms so she doesn't have to come out and help. Just watch you guys, that's how she's going to be all day." (Spoken at 730AM as being are just finishing getting report. Great way to start the day!)
Do you have (or are you one of) these dips running around in your unit? What do you think of these types? This person also orients people, thankfully on a very seldom basis because she's not a preceptor of choice. I have made reference to her in my other threads about bullies, and people have said she is not a bully.
What do you think? Use this thread to talk about "veteran bully queens of the ICU" or any med-surg floor.
Yep, complete with a circle of onlookers cheering the creativity of the bullies.
It isn't quite as creative as you think. It's a totally true to life story that I'm telling. It's a real person, in a real hospital.. like it or not, and so slay me for telling it, but these people walk among us. Be mad at reality, not me.
Generalize much? Looks, age, having been a nontraditional student, or having an underprivileged upbringing shouldn't enter into why you don't like someone. Having a nasty, rude personality would IMHO would be a legitimate reason to judge a person unfavorably. Please believe that there are insufferable people of every shape, size, socioeconomic status, etc.
Why can't you just be assertive with this individual?
"She's loud and outspoken. Markedly unattractive and overweight, in her mid 40s, she describes herself as having been in the ICU "forever." She's large and in charge, and everyone knows better than to argue with her because she's always right, and there's only way to do everything. An adult learner, she was a former waitress or CNA before "gettin' her RN" now attending an online-for profit school for her BSN or, more likely, refusing to further her education at all. She has been uplifted from a low income upbringing to "professional status" and for years has been drunk on an artificial sense of authority as an RN. Her particularly favorite hobbies include talking endlessly about her experience, describing the problems she has with "today's young nurses," and behaving rudely toward float nurses and travel nurses and medical interns just getting out of school because "they should know how to do all this without asking." She also makes frequent trips to the manager's office to pester and annoy.
I transitioned from my hospital's float pool to the medical ICU about 6 months ago, and we have one of these in my unit."
The way this is written is not to describe the one individual the OP has to suffer in his ICU. The title of the post and the first paragraph is set up to describe a type: "the bully queen of the ICU." OP is asking us if we have worked with one, or if (forbid!) we may be one ourselves. But how will we recognize her (for it certainly must be a female)? Well, the first paragraph provides the characteristics we should look for to identify the bully queen:
-she must be fat
-she must be ugly
-she must be "low class"
-she must be rude and outspoken
-she must hate new nurses and young nurses
-she must be arrogant
The next paragraph transitions to describe the individual with whom the OP works.
I just wanted to clarify for those who believe that OP was just creating a nice descriptive narrative to describe this one individual bully. If that truly was OP's intent, it surely was not written that way.
"She's loud and outspoken. Markedly unattractive and overweight, in her mid 40s, she describes herself as having been in the ICU "forever." She's large and in charge, and everyone knows better than to argue with her because she's always right, and there's only way to do everything. An adult learner, she was a former waitress or CNA before "gettin' her RN" now attending an online-for profit school for her BSN or, more likely, refusing to further her education at all. She has been uplifted from a low income upbringing to "professional status" and for years has been drunk on an artificial sense of authority as an RN. Her particularly favorite hobbies include talking endlessly about her experience, describing the problems she has with "today's young nurses," and behaving rudely toward float nurses and travel nurses and medical interns just getting out of school because "they should know how to do all this without asking." She also makes frequent trips to the manager's office to pester and annoy.
I transitioned from my hospital's float pool to the medical ICU about 6 months ago, and we have one of these in my unit."
The way this is written is not to describe the one individual the OP has to suffer in his ICU. The title of the post and the first paragraph is set up to describe a type: "the bully queen of the ICU." OP is asking us if we have worked with one, or if (forbid!) we may be one ourselves. But how will we recognize her (for it certainly must be a female)? Well, the first paragraph provides the characteristics we should look for to identify the bully queen:
-she must be fat
-she must be ugly
-she must be "low class"
-she must be rude and outspoken
-she must hate new nurses and young nurses
-she must be arrogant
The next paragraph transitions to describe the individual with whom the OP works.
I just wanted to clarify for those who believe that OP was just creating a nice descriptive narrative to describe this one individual bully. If that truly was OP's intent, it surely was not written that way.
Skinny beautiful nurses are NEVER bully queens!!! (And apparently only women are bullies?)
I didn't say such a person "must" be any of those attributes. I am trying to paint a generic picture of this individual. In my unit, in my individual case, all of the characteristics described are true to life for the bully queen in question. Your own bully queens may vary from individual case to individual case.
I haven't noticed the same thing, but if that's your experience, based on your limited interactions then whatever. I'll admit that I have heard of certain specialties drawing in certain "types". Have you ever thought about the conditions they work in and scenarios they work with could lead to a toughened persona and look?
RNdynamic
528 Posts
It isn't quite as creative as you think. It's a totally true to life story that I'm telling. It's a real person, in a real hospital.. like it or not, and so slay me for telling it, but these people walk among us. Be mad at reality, not me.