how many use the line when giving shots to women?

sharpeimom · Sep 4, 2009

i would find this approach totally inappropriate and offensive, no matter what my age happened to be and would promptly file a complaint against the offender for sexually offensive language. and yes i have a well developed sense of humor and no i didn't know miss nightingale personally. i'm not quite that old yet.

sharpeimom:paw::paw:

Long Term Care Columnist / Guide · Sep 4, 2009

Contrary to the beliefs of some, the workplace is not a singles' bar.

This behavior isn't cute. It's inappropriate, and it's probably illegal.

Time to grow up.

nursenow · Sep 4, 2009

Dude, do yourself a favor and stop saying that. It is only a matter of time before it bites you in the ass. It's not cute.

hiddencatRN, BSN, RN · Sep 8, 2009

Wow. That would make me so uncomfortable. The fact that your fellow nurses think it's fine for you to say doesn't change that, and you and the nurse who dismisses the "rare" patients' concern are *both* going to be in a lot of trouble when you get an offended patient who won't be brushed off.

I have a hard time believing that no one these patients have talked to cares about potential sexual harassment lawsuits. A really hard time.

Let me ask you this- even if it truly is only a minority of the patients you say this to that feel uncomfortable, is the fact that other people think it's funny sufficient justification to make some of your patients uncomfortable? Are the patients with a "good sense of humor" somehow entitled to better care from you?

Let me share a story with you. When DH was in paramedic school, one of his classmates told a woman in labor who was having trouble swallowing a pill that if she knew how to swallow she wouldn't be in that position. He was pulled off the floor immediately and dismissed from the program.

Drop the line. You're a nurse, not a comedian.

ItsTheDude · Sep 12, 2009

well, i talked to the senior nurse's husband the other day, he's a lawyer. he basically said, there isn't much legally the employer or the state can do, given the situation. females there are allowed to say it and do say it , that's where i picked it up. i guess a male could be offended by it if a female nurse said it to them, but it's never been an issue with the females there saying it to anyone.

he did say the employer is n the best position to stop it and probably should from a business prospective (keep customers/patients happy), if they wanted to, but the employer would have to stop/enforce it in a gender neutral bases. he said the state might be able to stop it if they had a gender neutral policy in place and it was enforced in a gender neutral manner, but it would be subject to constitutional constraints, which the employer isn't subject to.

as for patient's that might be offended, he couldn't think of a legal theory they could successfully win with either. sexual harassment laws generally apply to the employer-employee relationship, not the employee-customer/patient relationship.

elkpark · Sep 12, 2009

well, i talked to the senior nurse's husband the other day, he's a lawyer. he basically said, there isn't much legally the employer or the state can do, given the situation. females there are allowed to say it and do say it , that's where i picked it up. i guess a male could be offended by it if a female nurse said it to them, but it's never been an issue with the females there saying it to anyone.
he did say the employer is n the best position to stop it and probably should from a business prospective (keep customers/patients happy), if they wanted to, but the employer would have to stop/enforce it in a gender neutral bases. he said the state might be able to stop it if they had a gender neutral policy in place and it was enforced in a gender neutral manner, but it would be subject to constitutional constraints, which the employer isn't subject to.
as for patient's that might be offended, he couldn't think of a legal theory they could successfully win with either. sexual harassment laws generally apply to the employer-employee relationship, not the employee-customer/patient relationship.

Are you actually saying that the fact that you probably can't be fired or sued for making this type of comment makes it okay? It doesn't matter to you that "the line" is likely to offend or discomfit a good proportion of your female clients? Is this the degree of judgment and empathy you exercise in every aspect of your nursing practice, or is this some kind of isolated "blind spot"?

hiddencatRN, BSN, RN · Sep 12, 2009

At least you've clarified that you care about the potential consequences for yourself, rather than the comfort of your patients.

You've gone from "fun line to break the ice" to "only a few people get offended so it's no big deal" to "my actions are not illegal." Retreating to the lower standard of legality suggests that on some level you are aware that what you are saying is inappropriate.

nursenow · Sep 12, 2009

If it is no big deal, I think you should tell your office about your line. For that matter I dare you to do it and then post the results on this thread. Really, i dare you.

sharpeimom · Sep 12, 2009

if it is no big deal, i think you should tell your office about your line. for that matter i dare you to do it and then post the results on this thread. really, i dare you.

:igtsyt:

are all in fourth grade again?

"i dare you... really i dare you... then post the results..."

no. wait a minute. i don't know whether that's fourth grade or college frat boy.

yuck!

sharpeimom:paw::paw:

nursenow · Sep 13, 2009

:igtsyt:
are all in fourth grade again?
"i dare you... really i dare you... then post the results..."
no. wait a minute. i don't know whether that's fourth grade or college frat boy.
yuck!
sharpeimom:paw::paw:

umm, probably somewhere in later elementary school.

sorry sharpeimom, i guess you dont get it.

allnurses Guide · Sep 13, 2009

To Itsthedude: Let's see. . . You have a "gig" giving injections. You want to know how many use "the line", assuming it's so well known and hilariously funny all male nurses will know exactly what you're talking about. You hold a syringe in your hand and say, "you're going to feel a p***k". The lady assumes you're talking about her husband, or some other male in her life, and you both have a good laugh. If the lady is over 40, she REALLY gets it!!! :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

For the few old prudes that don't, well that 60+ year old bat of a charge nurse will set them straight. The girls say it, and dammit, the guy will too!! It's the law! She checked, and her husband said it was OK!!

Sorry, guy. This just sounds like :bugeyes: :jester: If you're serious, all the advice above should not be brushed off. You might just want to stay a nurse. Otherwise, thanks for a laugh.

texkid, RN · Sep 18, 2009

Highly inappropriate. Before I started working as a tech a few years back, I was told that a another tech saw that the wife of a patient in radiology was still in the room. He said in a "non-threatening, joking" manner, "oh, you're here all by yourself? Need some company?" and the next day the woman called the supervisor and said that the tech was making advances on her while her SICK husband was away. He was written up.