I got my coworker fired

I_LOVE_TRAUMA, RN · Oct 10, 2009

I am curious as to why you felt a duty to report this? If she were behaving that inappropriately then the patients/families would probably have reported her. Was she neglectful? Did she practice unsafely? Did the patient appear afraid of her? I agree, we need more info to help you. This is surely not the time to be unsure of reporting someone, I know she has at least 1 mouth to feed.And on a side note- I have seen MANY people get very unjustly fired following just 1 event, even when it was heresay.Come to think of it, I would have to count on my fingers AND my toes the number of times one of my co-workers (nurses/doctors-and myself) in the ER have been busted being inappropriate or a little vulgar- just a way we break up the tension. We try to keep it quiet, but every once in a while..., nurses are human, and I have not met one yet who was as angelic as we are made out to be-most are polar opposites-or maybe that's just where I work.But I also feel compelled to mention that we provide state-of-the-art care, with as much compassion and TLC as you can imagine, and our clients generally love us (even press ganey says so).

tewdles, RN · Oct 10, 2009

your report did not get her fired...a list of reports likely did

psalm, RN · Oct 10, 2009

You are not accountable for her getting fired. You gave the supervisor information on her behavior. Maybe the super already had a list of complaints? Maybe this was the last straw.

You aren't responsible for her getting fired. She is.

I felt bad going to my NM years ago about a co-worker that a patient complained about. She was unwilling to initiate a complaint but told me so I "could tell the manager". I did tell the manager what the pt. told me. Turns out the NM then talked to the pt. and it was taken care of. The co-worker didn't last much longer and I will never know, nor do I want to know, if my complaint was the deciding factor in the person "leaving".

sacstate2010 · Oct 10, 2009

I will start a program soon and already afraid of these situations. Why do people report on yeach other? I was a studetn for a while and wittnesses how some students do it and try to put down others, I just can get why? Instead of trying to help each other to survive those hard A&P classes, some are trying to get on top by putting you down. It is something that would be considered very horrible in my country and here it is all ok. Have you tried to talk to your coworker or just went and report on her? One day it can happen to you too. We all make mistakes, unfortunately.

JomoNurse · Oct 10, 2009

Did you TRULY (be honest) report because of that? Usually the other nurse has something personal against the other nurse. I also agree that there had to have been other contributing factors that resulted in her termination.

allnurses Guide · Oct 10, 2009

I agree, you reporting her one time PROBABLY did not get her fired, but I also agree that in situations like these it is better, albeit harder, to go to the nurse that is offending you and discuss it with him/her first.

Do you know for sure that she got fired? Someone may have chewed her out and upset her enough that she just decided to quit. Who knows?

Otessa, BSN, RN · Oct 10, 2009

I reported a coworker for her inappropriate behavior as a nurse. I expected her to maybe get suspended for a few days. When I went to work I found out the she was no longer an employee. I hate confrontation in general so it is making me very uncomfortable to have been in this situation.

I'd bet that you were not the only reason she was fired.....just the last straw.

otessa

Otessa, BSN, RN · Oct 10, 2009

Cursing, talking sexually explicit, and just generally acting immature in front of patients and family members. She was embarrassing to be around.

Sounds like she needed to GO!

Tweety, BSN, RN · Oct 10, 2009

I'm sure it probably wasn't the first offense and you're not the first to have said anything. You did the right thing.

mamamerlee, LPN · Oct 10, 2009

ABout 8 years ago, while in a non-nursing position, I repeatedly asked a co-worker to tone down his behavior. I worked at a call center, and if we needed to make a personal call there was a bank of phones in a corner for us to use. While I was on a phone, he was on another, speaking loudly and crudely. This happened more than once, and I finally confronted him. Other people also asked him to knock it off. After the the third or fourth time I confronted him, I went to HR to make a 'hostile workplace' complaint. He worked there only one or two days more - when they investigated my complaint almost everyone agreed with me.

I am an adult, and certainly enjoy adult-themed conversations in the appropriate place, but work is not one of those.

mommiof2kids · Oct 10, 2009

I emailed one of my team leaders about a coworker who was talking in patient care areas about very sexually explicit topics. It made me uncomfortable but I was mainly concerned about the patients (pedi) and their parents. All I asked was that she talk to him about it and remind him to not have conversations like that in patient care areas. Next thing I know, I'm being interviewed by HR and my manager. The HR person stated that the facility did not condone this type of harassment. Honestly, I didn't know that qualified as harassment. He did end up being terminated. One part of me felt guilty but the other part of me hoped that he learned from the situation. He had a history of talking about sexually explicit topics and I heard from others that they were uncomfortable. My motivating factor was the patients overhearing it. So, long story short, try not to feel guilty. Sometimes people just need a reminder about what is appropriate behavior. Hopefully she'll learn and will be successful in her next job.

bluemorningglory · Oct 10, 2009

I think that as long as one has the patients and team in mind when "telling on someone", then all is good. I am in an LNA class now and we have had the "When to report..." talk and our instructor basically told us to report the facts only and to stay away from extra commentary...