Job Discrimination...despite nursing shortage

[OliveVinesRN]

WARNING: This is a controversial topic. Some readers may object to the viewpoints to be posted within. If you are one that cannot tolerate controversy, you have the right to not read this thread. Otherwise, all viewpoints are welcome.

Hello, this is Olive Vines here. I have been wanting to post a thread on this topic for a while. However, I have postponed doing that until now.

My observation is one that many minority nurses can relate too. Especially minorties in small southern towns such as the one I reside in. Here we go.

It seems to me that non-white, non-female nurses have the hardest time getting a job outside of acute care facilities. I live in a small town that is about an hour away from a metropolitan area. I have noticed that when it comes to needing nurses, a lot of physician offices, healthcare clinics, schools seem to overlook equally qualified minority nurses. I am including male nurses as being a minority because that is what they are in this profession.

When I take my daughter or accompany my mother to the doctor's or dentist's office, the staff is 9 times out of 10, overwhelmingly caucasian. But on the other hand, you go to any hospital and you will find that black females abd male nurses account for a large percentage of staff in those areas. We all know that non-acute care can be stressful, but not as near as stressful as primary care or any other branch of nursing. I see this strange trend in long term care facilities as well.

The only places where I have seen the exception is in large metropolitan areas where white people do not tend to reside. And I see a lot of black and male nurses relocating to Birmingham and Atlanta to get top notch jobs because the opportunities have been denied in small cities such as where I live. And while most of the jobs they garner happen to be in acute care facilities in those large cities, there seems to be more job satisfaction for some reason.

And while I'm on the topic. I also have noticed that I have better nights when most of my patients are African-American. Those patients tend to be less demanding of my time and take me more seriously as a health-care provider. But, on the other hand, when I have white patients, especially older white males, I see myself being ran up and down the hall for the non-essential things. And also, I get a lot of lip from the patient as to what they are NOT going to do or what medicine they are NOT going to take until they talk to their doctor. But, hold it right there, here's the kicker. When a nurse, who happens to be white, has had that same patient before, they seem not get that same attitude or disrespect from that same patient. They get a very nice, compliant patient while I put up with crap from them.

And one last thing, and this is just a personal vent: I am so tired of being mistaken for Environmental Services, Dietary or the PCA by white patients. And this is all while I have my namebadge that has RN, BSN on it. That's a big pet peeve of mine.

Now, I welcome any viewpoints on this topic because I feel it needs to be addressed. With a nursing shortage, why be so picky? Why do minorities have to be destined to work in acute care while white female nurses can have their pick and choose? And why aren't male nurses as accepted by older patients as female nurses are? And before I get bashed and called out for being prejudiced against whites, let me just say, my father is white so that pretty much kills that notion. I just call it like I see it and what I experience. What do you all think? I welcome all with open arms and I promise, I will not be offended by anything you say.

[SharonH, RN]

Hi OliveVines, I don't know what to tell you. I am African-Amerian and I have always worked outside of acute care, in fact acute care has always been more of my sideline. But I do live in the Atlanta area which has a heavily Black population as you know so perhaps I am not the best gauge.

I would not put too much stock in the observation that the majority of nursing staff away from the hospital is White, remember nursing is 93% White so no matter where you work (except for inner city hospitals), the majority of the staff will be White. If you really want a position away from the bedside, just keep trying it's difficult to get that first position but it will happen. By the way, how long have you been in nursing?

[Tweety, BSN, RN]

Sharon brought up a point I was thinking because I read it recently. Blacks are not represented in the same percentage in the nursing profession that they are in the general population, so most of the nurses in any setting are going to be white. Getting more minorities in the profession would be a start.

Our Public Health Department here has quite a bit of black nurses working there. I know several black nurses come to the unit who work for insurance companies. Blacks practically run all the LTC's here. I don't frequent MD's offices, so I can't say, except my doctor's office (while I live in a mixed neighborhood, his office is in a white part of town) is all white staffed.

I agree with Sharon, keep trying. Not to negate your experience, I've lived in the deep south in a smaller city and I know how it is. I'm sorry for your experiences.

[Jo Dirt]

I know a nurse manager who is black. But I can see what you mean about small rural communities. They are very tight knit and whether you are white or black you will face job discrimination because you aren't related to so-and-so who's family has been in this town for generations and who knows such-and-such who's family has also been here generations and generations.

I've experienced it first hand. I by no means have an easier time because I'm white. I've found out that in the rural communities it's about who you know and who you're related to.

[nurse_robin]

i understand your feelings about being mistaken for the nursing assistant, housekeeper, etc. i am african-american and work in a small rural hospital and am the only black person in the icu. whenever someone assumes that i am not an rn, i smile and politely let them know that i am an rn and go about doing my job professionally. it irritates me, but i have been an rn for over 20 years and this still happens to me sometimes. i just take it in stride and move on.

many people have pre-conceived notions of others who are different than themselves and it's how we handle ourselves that confirms or unconfirms those beliefs.

you'd be surprised at how even other "educated" health care professionals buy into stereo-types of different cultures. i guess it's all a matter of not experiencing relationships with others of different backgrounds. i am extremely grateful that i grew up in a multi-cultural environment so that i "know better" than to pre-judge people.

quote:"those patients tend to be less demanding of my time and take me more seriously as a health-care provider. but, on the other hand, when i have white patients, especially older white males, i see myself being ran up and down the hall for the non-essential things. and also, i get a lot of lip from the patient as to what they are not going to do or what medicine they are not going to take until they talk to their doctor. but, hold it right there, here's the kicker. when a nurse, who happens to be white, has had that same patient before, they seem not get that same attitude or disrespect from that same patient. they get a very nice, compliant patient while i put up with crap from them." end quote

as a nurse, you are the boss...the patients are in your domain and there are ways for you to take control and set boundaries. change your attitude about yourself and you will see the change in respect you get from your patients. be professional, knowledgeable, and remember, you are a good nurse and they are lucky to have you caring for them.

good luck to you,

robin

[Antikigirl, ASN, RN]

I am so fortunate in my facility and the last one I worked in! There is so much of a mix of races and sex that to me, it is wonderful and actually representitive of the population of our community! Of course I live in the pacific NW...in a somewhat rural town (not to far from a large city).

There have, of course, been bumps in the road at the last place I worked in...and ALF. Many times female residents did not want male CNA's or Nurses...we acknowledged that. And some of these older folks...well...had a probelm with anyone of another race...we acknowledged that.

I mean, some older men of WWII that served in the Pacific got very angry if a Oriental looking person was tending to them...same with some folks that were not raised to accept black people. We would acknowledge that, however...I once told a WWII vet that I was mostly German...so did that exclude me??? Or the time I said "does it matter the skin color of someone that wishes only to help you??? Who will even clean you just because they know it would make you feel better and help you?" I won both those actually...

But other than that...I am very happy to be able to say I have been working with awesome people of many different backgrounds, races, sex, etc! My community is a wonderful mixture...so is our country...so it would stand to reason that people of all races, creeds, colors, sex, should wish to help others and be in healthcare :). Therefore I don't understand why anyone would be declined to help...

[Nella]

I don't know what to tell you. Maybe it depends on where you live.

I am a white female. I spent 16 years working in a hospital, so I quess that places me outside of what you posted. I worked in acute care hospitals in smalll towns and big cities. One of my supervisors was a black female when I was in a hospital setting.

I've worked in clinics too since leaving a hospital setting. I didn't leave because I am white but because I'm old!!!:) I worked for a black female internist to boot in a clinic, as well as Asian internists, female, male..........

I'm talking southern california, so we were pretty racially mixed. There were whites like me, mexicans, blacks, asians, you name it. LA's pretty big, and so is San Diego.

I have never worked in the south, so maybe your experiences there are different. But I would never deny your experiences.

[SueBee RN-BSN]

Well, we all saw what went on during Katrina.

[Tweety, BSN, RN]

Well, we all saw what went on during Katrina.

How does this relate to the original poster?

Are you saying racism is alive and well in America as evdidenced by the treatment of blacks after Katrina? I agree. But maybe you could elaborate on your point. :)

[Tweety, BSN, RN]

I have never worked in the south, so maybe your experiences there are different. But I would never deny your experiences.

Oh yes. The southern experience with racism, homophobia, religious intolerance, small town mentality is much more different than LA's. Trust me on this one.

[soliant12]

And what was that? I didn't notice any discrimination during Katrina

Well, we all saw what went on during Katrina.

[OliveVinesRN]

Hi OliveVines, I don't know what to tell you. I am African-Amerian and I have always worked outside of acute care, in fact acute care has always been more of my sideline. But I do live in the Atlanta area which has a heavily Black population as you know so perhaps I am not the best gauge.

I would not put too much stock in the observation that the majority of nursing staff away from the hospital is White, remember nursing is 93% White so no matter where you work (except for inner city hospitals), the majority of the staff will be White. If you really want a position away from the bedside, just keep trying it's difficult to get that first position but it will happen. By the way, how long have you been in nursing?

Hello, and thank you for responding.

I agree, nursing has always been a white female dominated profession. However, this is rapidly changing. And around here, there are not many professional options but to either be a teacher, social worker, or a nurse. But, I kid you not, just about every doctor's office or urgent care clinic I have been to has not one black person. And when a black person responds to an ad or goes to put in an application, you get this weird look from whoever's in charge as if they want to say "This application/resume is going into the trash just as soon as you leave". The only option for a black or male nurse around here is the nursing home or the hospital. Not to say that there are not any white nurses there, but it seems so much easier for them to get a job in other genres of nursing. But, as a previous poster said, this is part of the "good ole boy" mentality.

My frustration comes from having to almost always relocate to a bigger metropolitan area just to have nice job oppportunities and advancement if you're a black nurse. And while I contemplated moving to Atlanta or Marietta, I'd prefer to live in small town because the big city scares me. It seems as if I have to settle for what the white nurses don't want.

Oh, I've been a nurse for a year now. But I've seen some of my white colleaguesbe able to land jobs in MD offices or schools right out of school.