One thing i dont understand(at the nurses' station)

[BellaCat]

There is one thing I can never understand being at the nurses' station(sorry if I offend anyone but here goes):

I know that the nursing realm is full of people from different walks of life and culture and that is normal bc it is like that with other professions as well. And I do know that with the nursing profession, there are a lot of American-Filipinos. But the thing that I notice, in all of my work places... is that the Filipino nurses speak their language all the time with each other in front of non-Filipino coworkers and non-Filipino patients. Isn't this rude? I believe in the employee handbook of most facilities mention about speaking the universal language in front of everyone, instead of a particular language, this is only polite, especially if your coworkers next to you doesn't understand the language you speak or your patients. I see this happening a lot and the nurses always leave me "hanging" and "wondering" what they are talking about. Wouldn't you agree that this is just rude and disrespectful.

There's nothing wrong with having Chinese nurses, Filipino nurses, Russian nurses... but I think it'll be respectful and polite to speak the universal language that everyone can understand. Unfortunately, this will always happen at the nurses' station... and I just don't understand it. It's RUDE. Gotta open up those employee handbooks and read.

I am not a troll.. I just wanted to share this perspective of mine on here. Sorry if it's offensive... but if you turn the table around, you would know how it feels.

[caliotter3]

I've posted before about the extensive talk at the nurses' station, in English, loud enough to be heard by the resident in the adjoining room who had complained about her caregivers refusing to speak English when delivering her care. The talk was explicit to the point that the resident was in no way failing to understand that she was going to get it many times worse than what she was originally complaining about. While I was sympathetic to the plight of the resident being threatened, I fully well knew that the talk was conducted in English for my benefit too, since I was the only person at the nurses' station that didn't conduct business in the language other than English. I was glad when I left that place.

[Libby1987]

Oh please, it is rude and disrespectful in US culture. I can't figure why anyone would try to defend or justify it.

I personally wouldn't care, it would be an excuse to tune them out, but that doesn't change it from being any different than whispering like school kids.

[NuGuyNurse2b]

Oh please, it is rude and disrespectful in US culture. I can't figure why anyone would try to defend or justify it.

I personally wouldn't care, it would be an excuse to tune them out, but that doesn't change it from being any different than whispering like school kids.

THIS. Whether they are talking about you or not is irrelevant. They're in a professional environment and everyone is expected to be treated with the same level of respect. when they converse in another language while in your presence it's just plain rude. being made to feel left out is not acceptable in any professional environment. I don't care if they make cookies or invite you to their daughter's quinceaneras.

[carolinapooh, BSN, RN]

" I believe in the employee handbook of most facilities mention about speaking the universal language in front of everyone, instead of a particular language,"

The United States is a very Diverse Place my dear. I grew up in Houston where more people speak Spanish than English. In my nurse's station at any time you will hear Spanish, Tagala, Urdu, Arabic, and English.

As per your "Universal Language" theory, you are very much mistaken. The United States is among the very few countries in the world without a National Language. We are a nation of immigrants; while most governments enforce a specific language for all contracts, schooling, legal matters, employment, or other official business The United States does not. If you were to be discharged from the hospital in France you would not receive an English translation of your AVS. I am currently applying to The University of Manchester for my MSc, I am a natural born American and I have to submit an English Speaking Proficiency Exam Score to prove I speak English before I can be admitted for this very reason.

Off the soapbox the lion's share of Filipinos I have worked with have been extremely accommodating and polite. They probably don't know they are offending you. I once went to a new years party at someone's home and was the only person there who did not speak Tegala. EVERYONE spoke English if I was in the room the whole night. Just politely, in a non-threatening manner, explain to them it makes you uncomfortable. They would probably stop.

I've been in the hospital in Lugano, Switzerland - in 1989. I was inpatient overnight for observation after being shocked by a loose outlet in my hotel.

I got my discharge paperwork in Italian, French, and English. I remember this distinctly and actually still have it as an odd memento at home in the States.

I'm married to a Brit. Their university system requires every single non-British citizen applicant (or any Brit who does not claim English as their first language) to submit proof of English language proficiency, regardless of where you live or where you were born. It's a safety net for them. The United States actually requires the same thing - a passing TOEFL score if English is not your first language.

And Filipinos speak Tagalog, for the record.

[CardiacDork, MSN, RN]

Where do you work that you have time to chat at the nurses station?

[Horseshoe, BSN, RN]

You could always learn Tagalog if you feel uncomfortable and left out of their PRIVATE conversations.

"PRIVATE conversations" have no place at the nurse's station, regardless of the language. Save that for the lounge.

[Horseshoe, BSN, RN]

I've been in the hospital in Lugano, Switzerland - in 1989. I was inpatient overnight for observation after being shocked by a loose outlet in my hotel.

I got my discharge paperwork in Italian, French, and English. I remember this distinctly and actually still have it as an odd memento at home in the States.

That's because those languages actually have legal status as the official languages of Switzerland (except for English, which is often used to bridge the divide).

Constitutional rights

The Swiss constitution recognises the rights of the various language groups to communicate in their own language. German, French, and Italian are full official languages of the Confederation – all laws and official documents have to be available in them – and Romansh is a partial” official language for the purpose of communication with Romansh speakers.

Languages - SWI swissinfo.ch

[compassionresearcher]

I haven't read every response on here, so sorry if this is a repeat. Many facilities require you to speak the official language of that country when you are in public spaces where patients and visitors can see/hear you, that would usually include the nurses' station.

I recently ran a focus group on cultural sensitivity in our hospital and the general vibe from the participants was that if it's two people having a private conversation on a break then there is no problem. But if you are in mixed company, on work time, then it's best to make everyone feel included. I think speaking it's the social equivalent of whispering in somebody's ear in front of others. It doesn't promote teamwork and probably hinders it.

I spent 4 months in a language immersion program in another country and it can be very frustrating and uncomfortable to not be able to express yourself as well as you can in your native language. However, I recognized that I put myself in that situation and had to deal with it.

[DeeAngel]

It makes others uncomfortable when people speak a language that they can't understand and deliberately not caring if you make others uncomfortable is an act of rudeness. For me, if you are US based and speak at the nurses station in a language other than English for the purpose of excluding others from the conversation I find it unprofessional and rude. Speak in your own language if you must on breaks but not when you're on the clock and the need to speak that language is not there, speak English.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

There is one thing I can never understand being at the nurses' station(sorry if I offend anyone but here goes):

I know that the nursing realm is full of people from different walks of life and culture and that is normal bc it is like that with other professions as well. And I do know that with the nursing profession, there are a lot of American-Filipinos. But the thing that I notice, in all of my work places... is that the Filipino nurses speak their language all the time with each other in front of non-Filipino coworkers and non-Filipino patients. Isn't this rude? I believe in the employee handbook of most facilities mention about speaking the universal language in front of everyone, instead of a particular language, this is only polite, especially if your coworkers next to you doesn't understand the language you speak or your patients. I see this happening a lot and the nurses always leave me "hanging" and "wondering" what they are talking about. Wouldn't you agree that this is just rude and disrespectful.

There's nothing wrong with having Chinese nurses, Filipino nurses, Russian nurses... but I think it'll be respectful and polite to speak the universal language that everyone can understand. Unfortunately, this will always happen at the nurses' station... and I just don't understand it. It's RUDE. Gotta open up those employee handbooks and read.

I am not a troll.. I just wanted to share this perspective of mine on here. Sorry if it's offensive... but if you turn the table around, you would know how it feels.

My Fillipino colleagues are some of the nicest, most polite people I've ever met. While it is true that sometimes they speak to one another in Tagolog in the break room, med room or nurse's station, I've noticed that they immediately apologize and switch to English when I enter the space. They are also some of the smartest, most hard working and generous people I've ever worked with.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

I understand your perspective.. but they are BSN/RN/LVN nurses already, that means they are very well with the English language hence they all got the nursing licenses. I mean, i'm only asking to speak English in public(at the nurses' station while there are other nurses there). Whatever language they speak personally with other nurses in private is their business. I think that's not really asking for too much, am I right.

For me, I always speak English at the nurses' stations or when there's another coworker or patient around.

And what was your first language?

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

I see both sides. It probably is rude, but as a person who tried to learn another language and failed, I'm sure it is easier to revert back to your native language. No matter how well you know a second one unless you grew up truly bilingual it would be easier and more comfortable to use your native tongue.

I, too have tried to learn another language and failed.

I am sure it is easier and more comfortable to use your native tongue with someone who is fluent in that language. But we are talking about conversations AT WORK in an English speaking country, not conversations over a beer in the neighborhood tavern or at home, the laundromat, etc. Presumably these folks speak and understand English well enough to converse with patients, visitors and other members of the health care team. Therefore, I don't think it's too much to ask them to speak English in front of their colleagues.