hostile staff member

[blondeoverboard]

hi all,

i am in need of some advice. i am employed as an LVN in a small inpatient facility. there is a charge nurse who, for whatever reason, has decided i don't belong there. she has been difficult to work with for the last several months (she won't address me directly or make eye contact, when one of my patients needs something she doesn't tell me but rather announces the need to the room or tells another nurse with me standing there, tells other staff "watch her" and has been overheard telling people that i "need to go") annoying to be sure but now she's getting dangerous. i have been told by two other rn's that this woman is telling staff that i pronounced a patient, told the family there was nothing more we could do, sent the family home and called the funeral home all without notifying her. she then went to another charge nurse (who wasnt working that night) and told her to write me up. i've spoken to the patient care manager who has told me she will "investigate it." she's reliable and i know she will, however, this is now my license we're talking about. i'm not the only one having problems with this nurse. to my knowledge, she has been written up 5 times in a single week by 5 individuals (including family) for 5 separate incidents. the answer would seem clear but i'm not holding my breath. i've already taken myself off of the schedule for any shifts she is working but i'm wondering, doesn't what she's doing constitute slander? should i contact an attorney? do i contact the bne for my state?

thanks in advance for your input

[Vito Andolini]

She sounds psycho. Take the above advice, all of it, about witnesses, etc. Go to boss for a moderaed neetng, etc.

[blondeoverboard]

thanks for all of the input. i will not be leaving my job. i have done nothing wrong. i am a damn good nurse and will not be bullied and harrassed into leaving a position i love. i have just as much right to be there as she does and, by running from the situation, basically she wins and her tactics are reinforced. the general consensus among the staff is that she needs to be the one to go. as i said, i'm not the only one she's treating poorly... i just seem to be her "favorite." she has been removed from charge and other nurses are upset that they are having to give up their nights off to cover the position. the last night she was charge, they couldn't get regular staff to sign up (and this may be the way it happens.. with people refusing to work with her). the assignments had to be filled with agency nurses.

[caliotter3]

Well, if she has been removed from the charge position it is either because she has fallen from grace and may be on her way out, or she is being protected. Hopefully it is the first situation and it is only a matter of time. Maybe you can wait this out and work to see the day she is gone. Good luck.

[CrufflerJJ, BSN, RN, EMT-P]

the general consensus among the staff is that she needs to be the one to go.

Hopefully that "consensus" also includes facility management. Of course, that would make too much sense!

[2BSure]

hi all,

i am in need of some advice. i am employed as an LVN in a small inpatient facility. there is a charge nurse who, for whatever reason, has decided i don't belong there. she has been difficult to work with for the last several months (she won't address me directly or make eye contact, when one of my patients needs something she doesn't tell me but rather announces the need to the room or tells another nurse with me standing there, tells other staff "watch her" and has been overheard telling people that i "need to go") annoying to be sure but now she's getting dangerous. i have been told by two other rn's that this woman is telling staff that i pronounced a patient, told the family there was nothing more we could do, sent the family home and called the funeral home all without notifying her. she then went to another charge nurse (who wasnt working that night) and told her to write me up. i've spoken to the patient care manager who has told me she will "investigate it." she's reliable and i know she will, however, this is now my license we're talking about. i'm not the only one having problems with this nurse. to my knowledge, she has been written up 5 times in a single week by 5 individuals (including family) for 5 separate incidents. the answer would seem clear but i'm not holding my breath. i've already taken myself off of the schedule for any shifts she is working but i'm wondering, doesn't what she's doing constitute slander? should i contact an attorney? do i contact the bne for my state?

thanks in advance for your input

It seems to me that you have two options:

1) Stay and feel the need to CYA on a daily basis about everything -- this is NO way to live

2) Seek employment elsewhere

Ages ago I worked in a place where I actually kept a personal log of everything I did and every interaction I had. Obviously I didn't use patient names but date/time/rm number. Also, put on it my interactions with family visitors etc etc. I "won" if that is what you would like to call it. However, that woman's opinion of me dogged me for about 4 years. Sure she slandered me after she left but suing someone? Life is too short and being someone that brings lawsuits doesn't exactly make you an attractive employment candidate -- even if you are "right" and win.

I'd be interested to see what you patient care manager comes up with -- but most managers are rubbish at sorting these things out with a win-win. But if she can do it YAY for her.

You can, of course, try discussing it with the RN in question, but you would need to approach in quite a benign manner. Given that it has been escalated to the patient care manager already that really isn't an option.