Eating our young...and our colleagues

[fezzin]

It seems the stereotype it being perpetuated on this forum.

I was so excited to join this forum after I became an RN. I've been a lurker for a while; I can't believe the amount of nasty comments people post on here directed towards fellow posters. Maybe it's because of the anonymity that comes with the internet, but I'm appalled at the crassness of some of the comments. It seems you can't ask a "dumb" question or share a not-so-positive experience without someone calling you unprofessional, ignorant, or worse. How can we judge a person's level of professionalism based on one action or comment? I agree some posts are uncalled for, but why do we judge the person as a whole based on a poorly thought out piece of writing?

I am reluctant to even post this because someone will undoubtedly say something nasty. Come on people, we're all in this profession together; we should be supporting each other instead of bringing each other down. Lets break this stereotype of nurses eating their young. Play nice!

[canesdukegirl, BSN, RN]

You know, I was hesitant to post as well at first. But knowing that I may be fried for something that I wrote made me more cognizant of HOW I wrote something. I take a great deal of thought and time into writing a post that is not inflammatory. Sometimes I will respond to something that I disagree with, but I make sure that I think about what I am writing.

[martymoose, BSN, RN]

as someone who was ate up and spat out yesterday, its just the nature of the job- especially with high senoirity RN's. Ive come to accept it- why fight something that cant be fought. It will just encourage me to start looking for a new profession, even if it means going back to school at my old age :-(

[Rabid Response]

I really think that what you are perceiving here as nurses "eating their young" has more to do with the nature of the internet than it does with nursing in general or this particular site. This place is quite supportive and well-monitored compared to most of the forums I visit.

[Penelope_Pitstop, BSN, RN]

Let's face it - the anonymity the internet provides allows people to act a certain way.

It's not limited to this message board, though.

My friend's boyfriend was shot recently. People posting comments in regards to our local newspaper's story have said some downright nasty things about him (that he must have been a drug dealer, or that it's a good thing we have one less thug roaming the streets). I know these people wouldn't have the guts to say this in person, or even if they had to use their real names.

[SammyL]

I was only discussing this issue with a colleague at work today... You would think in this profession it would be in our best interest to support, teach and back eachother up.

But there will always be those that stand on another to make themselves look or feel superior. Doesn't mean that their actions are perceived as such by others though.

[wifeandmomoftwo]

This is the thing I dislike most (in my very limited experience) about nursing. I'm a brand new nurse. Got my license this past Thursday (YAY!). I'm looking for my first job. When I started nursing school we were told "there are no such things as stupid questions". I never asked anything unless I had taken the time to research it myself. The only exception I can think of to this was if I didn't understand the question itself. More often than not I was given more questions in return and no answers. I would then find a nurse friend and ask her so that I could attempt to get it. I graduated top of my class so my intellect is not the problem. I could understand if I just ran to the instructor with every question (I can say this because other students did this to me at times) rather than look them up myself. It was very frustrating.

[iNurseUK, RN]

The internet has much worse. Try 4Chan or the like.

We are merciful.

[JBudd, MSN]

I have also noticed that there are just as many that will spring to the defense of those posters. It just seems like the nastier comments stick out and on louder and harder, than the 4 or 5 that support or defend.

[LegzRN]

I frequent and post on an air force forum and that site makes this one look like candy land.

[nurse2033, MSN, RN]

You know, I was hesitant to post as well at first. But knowing that I may be fried for something that I wrote made me more cognizant of HOW I wrote something. I take a great deal of thought and time into writing a post that is not inflammatory. Sometimes I will respond to something that I disagree with, but I make sure that I think about what I am writing.

You are correct! Without your tone and body language to back you up, online communication must be written thoughtfully.

[klone, MSN, RN]

The internet has much worse. Try 4Chan or the like.

We are merciful.

Oh yes. I cut my internet teeth on a site that regularly made people cry. And that was a group of breastfeeding mothers. This is child's play by comparison.