Night nurse

[lasair]

Really I just need to vent. I have been a registered psychiatric nurse for all of 4 months, with two months pre reg with my current employers. I'm getting to know the place pretty well and like to think I am doing a good job. It is a stressful job at the best of times but I love it.

I am having trouble with one of the night nurses - when I or another nurse are giving hand over he complains that we don't do enough on the ward, didn't do something the way he would have, he doesn't believe we try hard enough to prevent a situation from happening and so on. In the morning it is the same - I left the medication room a little untidy the last day as I was really rushed and it slipped my mind (I wasn't completely my fault either), I have no problem taking on what I did but the way he spoke to me got really under my skin "so don't do it again".

It is more the way he says things, so matter of fact, not in a suggestive or supportive manner because yeah, at times he is right and gives another way of doing something. He never works days or takes on the fact that we usually work with half the number of nursing staff we should have.

Do you guys ever come up against any of this? I understand there will be things like this in every part of the job - it is just really annoying

[caughtbuckinoff]

I would be quite matter-of-fact with him. Not nasty, but simply telling him that his attitude makes it difficult for you to cooperate with him. Night or day, you are a team and he needs to treat you with respect. His poo stinks too 😇.

I do speak from experience. Honesty usually is the best policy, as respectfully and simply as possible (no matter how much you would like to trip them in the hallway).

[Anonymous1257]

I recommend a series of elaborate pranks ultimately culminating in all the night and day shift nurses standing around having a good laugh with lessons learned and commradory abounding!

seriously though, jerk coworkers are going to be jerks. Be straight up and tell him when he is coming off as brusk or rude and that you expect to be treated with respect. If he doesn't change his tune and it's really bothering you then file a complaint with HR. Sometimes in life you just have to learn to ignore the A-holes.

[Barnstormin' PMHNP]

Just a thought here. I really like working with male peers as they usually tell it like it is (in their view anyway!). The bad part is that it can come across as being abrasive. The good part is that you can come right back in the same manner and it won't cause a problem because guys for the most part say their piece and that's it and they don't get ruffled when you come back at them. I tend to hold on to things and fume (a habit I am conscious of), most guys don't. Be aware of your own feelings and tell it like it is to him. Above posters had great advice.

[TerpGal02, ASN]

I would encourage you to follow previous poster's advice and try to develop a rapport with this nurse and professionally let him know his approach bothers you and help him understand how you would like to be approached. We teach others how to treat us :)

I can kind of see his point though, without being all jerky about it. I work nights and if something has happened on evenings that caused a crisis that is not well resolved, that creates a major safety issue for us as we work with a skeleton crew at night. Also the mess thing, I cannot tell you how many times on nights we have been chastised for leaving messes by day shift that THEY left behind the day before. Just to play devils advocate.