This vile expression implies that experienced nurses do not treat new nurses kindly. My first problem with the statement is that it’s a generalization implying that all nurses are like that. Interestingly, whenever I hear someone utter the expression, I always say, “I don’t do that. Do you?” The person making the statement always says, “Oh no, I don’t, but many others do.” I’ve never heard even one nurse own up to doing this, although some nurses are willing to indict the entire profession. Every time that statement is repeated, it causes harm and casts a dark shadow on every nurse. Say anything enough, and it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Please note that by moderator consensus some of the "Nurses Eat Their Young" posts will be referred to this thread where there can be an ongoing discussion, rather than several threads saying the same thing.
To students and new grads that are having problems with nurses, please take a moment to read the above link. Is it really the entire profession, every single nurse, or do you need help with one or a few nurses? We will be glad to help you in dealing with those people, but let bury the phrase "Nurses Eat Their Young".
To experienced nurses who claim our profession eats it's young, please take a moment to read it as well and think about it. Also take time to teach, be friendly and nurturing to the new nurse and students on your unit.
An adage that I carry forward in my life is this: Once I paint myself as a victim, I have robbed myself of any power I had to change things.
It isn't anyone else's job to make my life the way I want it. Whether or not bullies exist and will make minced meat of me when I hit the floor as a new grad is not nearly as important as my mindset for the life I want to live and my own determination to have it. I may be bullied, but I won't be a victim of it, as once I am victimized, I have made myself helpless. Some people feed off the hope for sympathy. I learned that sympathy is useful for about 20 minutes of self pity. After that, it does nothing but keep me immobilized. Are people being bullied victims of bullying? Sure. Should they think of themselves that way and expect it is going to change anything? No. People feeling sorry for you is useless in the grand scheme of things. Figure out what you want from life, outline a few ways to get it, pick an option and act. You hold all the keys to your own happiness.
Love what you have to say about this! I am a new grad in orientation and overheard some nurses state they didn't like me for what reason I did not hear. But I sat there for a moment thinking how am I going to handle this. Obviously hurt, and then I decided no that's not what I wanted, I need to think this through. This is my job and I am not looking for a new best friend but a new profession! I do not think they thought I was close by and heard them. I am going to try my best to make light of this stuff and take note of what NOT to do (act). I had one girl make a smart comment to me when I asked a question. Although always a sweet person when I asked the questions, I've learned quickly that I need to communicate a lot for them to understand why I need to know things or why I ask certain questions so that it is not taken the wrong way. Maybe they are sensitive but I am going to remain professional and take it with ease. If I can laugh everything else off I will feel like I've accommplished a lot :) Good Luck to me lol
Not all of us eat our young.. although I am only a nurse for a little over 1 yr, I make it a point to be extra supportive of the new hires/grad's and let them know that I'm not "one of those" nurses. I think it's horrible how insensitive some nurses can be to the newer crew... and older crew too! Some just have the personality of a dirty soap dish! Try your best to not let it bother you, or give it right back to them. Most of them are just testing you... now that's mature huh?
Specializes in med surg, geriatric, clinical, pool.
Joanie I know that there are ones here that think there is no such thing as bullying on the job by nurses but believe it or not it does occur it is NOT always the one that is getting bullied fault---I and 7 others took my case to the ethics committee and trust me they a were very interested in what we had to say and are going to approach my job concerning this matter--now I am not saying that some of what is said here is not true cause it is but despite what some are saying it is NOT always the new grad's fault and just as the State Board of nursing and the Ethics Board for Nursing said Bullying is very much real and happens alot in nursing--but because of the OLD set ways people refuse to believe that bullying or nursing eating their young does exist and it can be dealt with there are ethic committees that will do it for you if you can't get it done through proper channels first
And believe or not my situation has already improved tremedously bc one of the ones that was causing problems for me is no longer there :) the others well time will tell :) but I am doing 100% better and actually love going to work again
Very nice for you. You had the guts and the knowledge to know where to turn to. I went to the floor supervisor after being so picked on because I could not understand why these 2 head nurses just seemed to have it in for me. That did not work either. Later, I think, they actually set me up to fail giving me 7 pts one night, one of which was a new admit which had to be taken downstairs to xray q1h...how on earth was supposed to be able to watch my other pts I have no idea!
Anyway an elderly lady with a heart condition of mine passed. She had had a radical abdomen surgery with a new colostomy bag. So at midnight I got her vitals first. She was one of those whose respirations were so faint you couldn't tell if she was breathing. So when I came back at 4am I did colostomy care first. Keep in mind I was brand new and this was dumb, I have seen dumber done though, but she had passed. She was cold to touch so I knew she had to have been gone for some time. Did any of the other nurses check on her while I was gone? I don't know. But I didn't call a code and that's where they got me! But it also made me a better nurse as I became aware so more.
But here is my big question. If I was so bad, why didn't anything show against my license?
Really it was a blesssing in disguise. I went out got a job doing agency and I never looked back! I didn't have the pressure of staff nurses constantly wanting to "write me up!"
And the head nurse from the floor above us called me onto the elevator one night. She informed me that V. would continue to "ride my back" until I transfered to another floor or quit. I asked her "why"? What did I have on 2 nurses with 28 & 30 yrs experience? She said V. had done this to other new nurses too. She said "it could be just the way you look". I took pride in being a nurse and always wore white, pressed my uniform clothing and fixed my hair and face even though it was 11-7, I took pride in myself. they always wore scubbs. Not that it bothered me. I didn't care.
Specializes in med surg, geriatric, clinical, pool.
Love what you have to say about this! I am a new grad in orientation and overheard some nurses state they didn't like me for what reason I did not hear. But I sat there for a moment thinking how am I going to handle this. Obviously hurt, and then I decided no that's not what I wanted, I need to think this through. This is my job and I am not looking for a new best friend but a new profession! I do not think they thought I was close by and heard them. I am going to try my best to make light of this stuff and take note of what NOT to do (act). I had one girl make a smart comment to me when I asked a question. Although always a sweet person when I asked the questions, I've learned quickly that I need to communicate a lot for them to understand why I need to know things or why I ask certain questions so that it is not taken the wrong way. Maybe they are sensitive but I am going to remain professional and take it with ease. If I can laugh everything else off I will feel like I've accommplished a lot :) Good Luck to me lol
I also thought this way! I kept my mouth shut and went along to get along. I thought things were like that because I was new and its something all newbys have to do. But no matter what I did, it was really hopeless. I can truely look back now, 20 yrs later, and say "nothing would have made these 2 supervising nurses happy":uhoh3:
Since then one has passed unexpectedly, bless her, really! Old V., I saw her in a store one day and she saw me, this is 20 yrs later, and I was going to walk over to talk to her, she was gone! No where was she to be found.
Specializes in Hospice, Case Mgt., RN Consultant, ICU.
Some places are just not good places to work. Personally I dislike the term 'eating their young.' As a new nurse I never experienced it and have made it a point to be helpful to others who were new or had floated into the unit. Some people are just allowed to get away with murder. And it is not only in hospitals! Once as a mature nurse just returning to nursing I had the experience of asking the 'charge nurse' what their facility meant by 'aspiration precautions'. This facility had a policy and procedures book, but it was locked away in a cabinet where no one could get to it! Anyway this nurse (an LPN with only one year experience) snapped at me, 'Don't you know what aspiration is?' I responded, 'Yes, of course, I know what aspiration is. I worked in ICU/CCU for 10 years!' She responded, 'Was that in a hospital?' Sad thing I think she really didn't know ICUs are in hospitals! She was charge because for some reason the Director of that floor wanted her to be. I did not stay there but a few months. This happened about 10 years ago and I still remember it.
More recently I worked at a major insurance company and the unprofessional stuff that went on there was amazing. All sorts of back stabing. And going to HR to report harrassment just got me terminated. They wanted me to be happy. Employers are always impressed when they see that company on my resume. Oh, but if they only knew!!! :)
Oh, yes, not only do nurses eat their young, but also their peers.
I had a recent experience where I floated to a telemetry unit from my MS floor, and had the privledge of overhearing the charge nurse complain to the clinical manager about the " nurse from_______" that we have today". Not about me, just that any nurse from that floor must be subpar. The CM agreeed, stating "I don't know why they keep sending them here"
I called my charge later to relay my experience, and the C.M. from that floor (who obviously heard back from HIS boss) tried to blunder his way out of it.
Little did he know that I had been an ICU nurse for 14 years before joining this organization as a MS nurse to have a less stressfull transition into the last years of my career.
I was QUITE cabable of taking care of ANYTHING he could have thrown at me. but because of his arrrogance at assuming that I could know NOTHING , all he did was **** me off and vow NEVER to accept an asignment on his floor again.
Specializes in med surg, geriatric, clinical, pool.
I have to hand it to you nurses who hang in there. The whole thing of having to fight/take up for yourself got so tiresome and I could not see the point of even trying to stay with nursing, so I quit!
I followed nurses from the prior shift only to find out that the patient had not been admitted as a diabetic and here I was giving her a bolus feeding of Gevity Plus! I went back to the MAR and nope, there was nothing about her being a diabetic, needless to say I did report them, but I was stuck with their mess of trying to get this pt on track and not die on me!
No one sticks up for you even when you do everything right.
I had another nurse literally take the phone out of my hand while I was repaging the doctor and she said, "cancel call" and hung it up, with the DON standing right there!
I was so bumfuzzled I didn't know what to do even after working in nursing homes for 8 yrs. I was just amazed at her gall! Did she get in trouble? Probably not. But she was leaving the AM shift while I still had to work to 11PM & take care of this pt along with many other pts to care for too.
Nursing homes have got to be the worst for being understaffed.
I will never forget that day! That day was beyond awful.
I do not agree that ALL NURSES EAT THEIR YOUNG. I've had alot of great and uplifting learning experiences from various nurses I have worked with during clinicals so far. There are bright rays of sunshine...
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
july 18, 2010
i whole heartly agree that "all nurses eat their young" i whole heartly agree that "all nurses eat their young" i can relate to this saying because i am a new nurse currently working in medical oncology; although i am the second nurse with bsn degree and the majority with adn but who have been working for years on this floor; they totally eat me almost everyday. they make me cry, they are rude and condescending and ignore what i say. i totally feel i am worthless and a total idiot by the end of most of my days on this floor. the main problem is i love this unit because i love oncology; i don't know who to reach out to; my family depend on me for financial support and i have three mouth to feed. i feel miserable and live a nightmare most of my days when i should be enjoying learning new things. i have signed a contract and i have to fulfill the agreement of this contract. i feel threatened; i don't know what to say. to those who think that nurses don't eat their young; you still have to learn what it is like to be me!
to those who have lived this horrible experience i pray for you; remember
tomorrow is a new day; god is watching!
i'm very sorry that you're having a tough time with your job. the fact that you're having a tough time, however, does not mean that all nurses eat their young, or even that you're being eaten."
anstudent
8 Posts
Love what you have to say about this! I am a new grad in orientation and overheard some nurses state they didn't like me for what reason I did not hear. But I sat there for a moment thinking how am I going to handle this. Obviously hurt, and then I decided no that's not what I wanted, I need to think this through. This is my job and I am not looking for a new best friend but a new profession! I do not think they thought I was close by and heard them. I am going to try my best to make light of this stuff and take note of what NOT to do (act). I had one girl make a smart comment to me when I asked a question. Although always a sweet person when I asked the questions, I've learned quickly that I need to communicate a lot for them to understand why I need to know things or why I ask certain questions so that it is not taken the wrong way. Maybe they are sensitive but I am going to remain professional and take it with ease. If I can laugh everything else off I will feel like I've accommplished a lot :) Good Luck to me lol