Nurses not speaking english at work

Nurses General Nursing

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I work nights and the majority of the night nurses are foreign, they are all very good nurses but sometimes I feel out of place because they are always speaking their language to each other. They all take their breaks together and have a feast every night, many times leaving me on the floor by myself. I am out numbered and am afraid to say anything, it took awhile to get accepted and I don't want to make waves.

Funny how some folks insist that when you're in the US you should speak in English.....but in reality, certain work places actually hire only someone who is bilingual!

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But American nurses often create "cliche" groups as well and talk about facebook,parties etc and nurses from other countries feel left out so I guess it also equalize out.

That is completely true - but sometimes others are invited to join in and they choose not to (I've seen it work that way as well). If they're not invited in, then yes, it's equally wrong.

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Funny how some folks insist that when you're in the US you should speak in English.....but in reality, certain work places actually hire only someone who is bilingual!

Which is based on the population they serve. It doesn't change my view that people who are living here need to learn enough English to survive. You need to make the effort; we shouldn't be catering to everyone while at the same time people need to be taken care of while they're learning.

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But American nurses often create "cliche" groups as well and talk about facebook,parties etc and nurses from other countries feel left out so I guess it also equalize out.
If you mean clique groups, there are cliques in just about any gathering of more than half a dozen people, starting with the cool kids at recess. Because there are minimum language requirements for nurses from other countries to be granted visas and work here, language alone should not be blamed as the sole reason for cliquish behavior by English-speaking nurses.

It would be nice if each of us tried to connect with our co-workers and found ways to build on common ground. Excluding others by speaking a language they don't understand is inconsiderate at best and hostile at worst. Because of the previously mentioned language requirements, English ought to be a common denominator and employers are wise to ask that it be spoken.

Funny how some folks insist that when you’re in the US you should speak in English…..but in reality, certain work places actually hire only someone who is bilingual!
Seeking to hire bilingual nurses is an acknowledgment of the fact that we can't mandate the language of our patients.
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They probably agree to work for less.

Just my thoughts about your question

That is inaccurate. According to US Labor laws they would not be able to be paid any less than a native-born American in the same hospital in the same position. Even if they are only in the USA on a temporary work visa.

There are dozens of reasons why hospital administration choose to hire Filipino nurses, lower pay is not among them.

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During an interview you are not asked if you are American or foreign(just for your information doctors and nurses have to speak the language in order to work in the hospital, they do not have to be fluent),

Two corrections

In an interview you are required to let them know if you are currently able to work legally in the USA. The specific visa does not come into question; but you do have to inform them if you are not currently under a visa status which permits you to work.

You do have to be fluent in English if you are coming from another country. In order to be licensed in most states you have to pass English Certification such as IELTS or TOEFL. The IELTS band score required is 7 average with minimum category score of 6.5 which is an English Proficiency level approximate to a native speaker in high school.

This English proficiency is waived at the state level (in many cases) for nurses from the Philippines because the Nursing education here is done completely in English.

If a nurse is arriving to the USA on an employment based visa then he or she has to complete VisaScreen certification which also requires IELTS or TOEFL at the aforementioned score level in order to satisfy Immigration that he or she is capable.

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I have a coworker who is a native ojibwe speaker. She has taught me a lot of the cultural rules ad I hope someday that she will teach me a bit of her language.

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Phillippino nurses may have a BSN but it is not equal to the USA since they have only 2 years of high school. Also the quality of the education is poor were less than 20 percent pass their local boards to say it is better is incorrect.

The first statement is irresponsibly ludicrous. FILIPINO nurses' BSN is completely on par with US education level; this is evaluated in the processing of the licensure application either by the BON itself or by CGFNS.

YES, Pinoys tend to only have 3 years of high school; however the 4-year nursing program actually contains more total hours than the 4-year program in the USA since there are more class days and they are able to complete the bridging difference from US high school and Philippines based high school education as well as all the educational requirements of a BSN equal to a US graduate.

YES, there are some crap schools and that means that only 40% (not 20%) pass the local boards.

But if they don't pass the local boards then they really aren't your concern are they? Since those that don't pass local board cannot even apply for licensure in the USA!

You are consistently negative against Pinoy nurses on these boards and I think it would do you a lot of good to actually COME to the Philippines and see for yourself instead of running on wild assumptions.

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I have had more than one Filipino tell me that their education is not equivalent to our's. They told me that they are basically two years behind what US schools expect.

That was a seriously ill-informed statement.

If that were the case then Pinoy RNs would never be able to get CES certification since part of the evaluation is to ensure that the education is on the same level with USA-based BSN education. If it is not complete in any aspect then the certification is not issued. I have seen the certification denied to South Asian (India and Pakistan) Nurses and to some from Africa so I don't want to hear any arguments that CGFNS doesn't care or any of that. They have been hired by the BONs to do this job precisely and completely.

With respect to California BON, they are exceptionally harsh in the way they scrutinize foreign applicant credentials. Much harsher, in fact, than CGFNS. Yet Pinoy nurses all qualify under their scrutiny.

Nursing education in the Philippines was originally established by US schools and hospitals. It is designed from the ground up to be equivalent with US nursing education.

Public schools in the Philippines, however, are another matter entirely.

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right so there is my question. how is it that you were born in the us and consider spanish your first language? i find that perplexing.

because america doesn't have an official language!!!!!!!!!!

you can speak whatever language you damn well please!

how about the massive population of polish people in the chicago area who speak polish as a first language and english as a second?

bosnians?

arabs?

somalis?

first nation tribespeople?

america is a land of many people and many cultures. they all have a right to their language first and foremost and then speaking english as the "common" language in america; not the "official" language. learn the difference.

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It's not? Maybe not officially, but it is the language that is taught in 95% of the schools here in this country. If English isn't the "official" language, why are we teaching it to all our children in our schools?

Not a good argument to make since 95% of the schools also teach Spanish as early as 1st grade to help children become bilingual in an increasingly bilingual nation.

Roughly 40% of all Americans consider Spanish to be their first language; like it or not, America is a bilingual nation.

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at my last job, they posted signs saying, please do patient report in English,and not another language.

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