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.

Specializes in Med/Surg, Academics.
YOU ARE KIDDING, right!!!!!!

This is very insulting to all of us other immigrants! Why should we learn spanish? We live in America where english is the official language ( at home u speak whatever you want).Why should my kids learn spanish? what kind of a person would say something like that? And you wonder why they have riots in Arizona....:mad:

I find this quote most interesting. I am assuming that the poster is a non-Hispanic immigrant who resents the implication that all people living and working in the US should learn Spanish.

This falls right in line with my previous post. Exactly WHICH language should we learn in order to accommodate all?

That has been my biggest beef with the "ugly American"-type posts. Some would nod approvingly if I said I spoke Spanish as a second language, but it does no good when working with other patient and coworker groups. That, however, doesn't matter, huh?

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What nursing shortage? Nurses are out of work and looking for jobs in record numbers.

Please answer my question regarding why it is ok to give jobs to foreingers while US citizens go hungry? I do not understand.

I am not being facetious here, I am really seeking to understand the rationale.

Because hospitals think they can pay them less? That's my guess.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Academics.
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.

Um, if they are living and working as nurses in the US, they are fluent in English, so how can they be "left out"?

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

Where in the world are you getting this statistic?

ETA: Sorry, you already answered this further down in the thread.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Academics.

It's strange to me that you see your interpreter duties

I was not hired as an interpreter, I am hired as a nurse. Intrepreting takes time away from my patient load.:nurse:

If you lived in Chicago, your Spanish-speaking ability would be put to good use for your patients. But, what would you do when your patient was Polish? Remember, the other nurses aren't there to translate for you, right?

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To the OP:

Sounds hurtful. Did you ever ask them to include you? Perhaps they are beetches, perhaps they are ignorant, perhaps they are just not thoughtful and would be upset to find out that you are upset. It might be worth opening your mouth to address the issue openly. Nobody like to be excluded from a group, regardless of the basis of the exclusion.

The xenophobia spewing forth in this thread is jaw-droppingly astounding from supposedly educated, professional people. Even the fact that any, let alone many posters assumed that the people speaking a foreign language are not US citizens would be laughable, if it wasn't so sad.

You are absolutely uninformed and incorrect. I have in my possession a CES report which clearly states "EQUIVALENT TO A US BACHELOR DEGREE IN NURSING" with regard to my "foreign" education.

Why is it when a student applies for admission to a university their credentiAls have by another agency and often have to do male up courses to proceed for a masters degree. As a nurse educator I have seen is thousands of time.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Academics.
Why is it when a student applies for admission to a university their credentiAls have by another agency and often have to do male up courses to proceed for a masters degree. As a nurse educator I have seen is thousands of time.

It is common for bachelor's degrees from other countries to be reviewed before an equivalency stamp is placed on them for many majors, not just nursing. They are usually the science- or math-intensive majors.

The problem of transferring credentials even applies between schools in the US, if you think about it. Junior college students the country over often complain that credits earned in a cc school won't transfer to the university they want go to. It has to do with curriculum requirements in the degree-conferring school.

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Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
I find this quote most interesting. I am assuming that the poster is a non-Hispanic immigrant who resents the implication that all people living and working in the US should learn Spanish.

This falls right in line with my previous post. Exactly WHICH language should we learn in order to accommodate all?

That has been my biggest beef with the "ugly American"-type posts. Some would nod approvingly if I said I spoke Spanish as a second language, but it does no good when working with other patient and coworker groups. That, however, doesn't matter, huh?

You can never win an argument based on another person's opinion of our thoughts, since it's impossible to convey thoughts and attitudes to prove the point that you aren't a racist or an Ugly American. If you try to defend yourself with logic, they'll pick a new thing you said to misinterpret. In a very few cases, such as a guy like David Duke, it's glaringly obvious what they think, but usually the bar is far lower than that. People who hurl that insult when the topic is language, immigration, healthcare reform, or all the tea in China simply because it's impossible to disprove with words are rank cowards and intellectually dishonest IMO. :twocents:

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I understand where u are coming from. I speck another language and i currently work in a hospital setting where i notice that their are those nurses who speck another language and they tend to stay with their own. I understand that sometimes u may feel self conscious , and wonder in the back of ur head thinking are they talking about me? But the best way to get threw this is to talk to them, or become friends with them. That's what i did. And they will respect u, and not speck their language when every you are around, Just tell them it makes u feel uncomfortable!:)

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Why is it when a student applies for admission to a university their credentiAls have by another agency and often have to do male up courses to proceed for a masters degree. As a nurse educator I have seen is thousands of time.

Your comment is made in the state of complete misunderstanding of the methods used by a university versus those used by an evaluation body for licensure.

A university is evaluating the course by their own standards whereas an evaluation body is using overall standards.

If you got a BSN from a small state college and then went to complete an MSN at a larger, more prestigious university then it is likely you would still have to make up certain courses because the larger university requires more of their students for a BSN.

Additionally, course curriculum does not always translate as equal from one college/university to another even though the previous degree is still valid and recognized nationwide.

For example; I completed courses at NCSU for my engineering degree, when I went to a local community college for a different degree many of my courses did not transfer (even though I had high marks) and I had to re-take a Grammar and Composition course because the structure was different from what the community college provided.

The job of evaluation teams for nurse licensure is to ensure that the BSN graduate from another country has the same level of education as a BSN graduate from the USA.

Many people point to the fact that in the Philippines the common/base education does not complete the same 12 years that US schools do.

However they fail to recognize that the school year is longer and school days are longer.

Aside from that, many industrialized nations have the same "short" program for schools.

Also, in the Philippines when you complete a BSN you are completing 4 years as in the USA but those 4 years equate to 12 semesters instead of 8 because of the longer school year.

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But they really can't as per immigratn laws. In fact, in the early part of 2000, some were even offering sign on bonuses when they recruited nurses from abroad.

Because hospitals think they can pay them less? That's my guess.
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Your comment is made in the state of complete misunderstanding of the methods used by a university versus those used by an evaluation body for licensure.

A university is evaluating the course by their own standards whereas an evaluation body is using overall standards.

If you got a BSN from a small state college and then went to complete an MSN at a larger, more prestigious university then it is likely you would still have to make up certain courses because the larger university requires more of their students for a BSN.

Additionally, course curriculum does not always translate as equal from one college/university to another even though the previous degree is still valid and recognized nationwide.

For example; I completed courses at NCSU for my engineering degree, when I went to a local community college for a different degree many of my courses did not transfer (even though I had high marks) and I had to re-take a Grammar and Composition course because the structure was different from what the community college provided.

The job of evaluation teams for nurse licensure is to ensure that the BSN graduate from another country has the same level of education as a BSN graduate from the USA.

Many people point to the fact that in the Philippines the common/base education does not complete the same 12 years that US schools do.

However they fail to recognize that the school year is longer and school days are longer.

Aside from that, many industrialized nations have the same "short" program for schools.

Also, in the Philippines when you complete a BSN you are completing 4 years as in the USA but those 4 years equate to 12 semesters instead of 8 because of the longer school year.

From the ces site

'The CGFNS International Credentials Evaluation Service (CES) reports analyze the credentials of multiple levels of nursing professionals who are educated outside of the United States and who wish to pursue licensure or academic admission in the United States. The CES report is advisory and does not make specific placement recommendations'

I have never encountered a person who has had a degree not have credits accepted. That is the purpose of a diploma, Sometimes people have to take some courses that are required for admission, like stats.

This is off topic .....

All colleges require a high school diploma which is 12 years of schooling.

I am basing this on my personal and professional experiences, of course, having a mother who worked as a college adminstrator and a father who was a professor, the issue of international education and transferring was often discussed.

All my immediate family members have Masters degrees and never had to do any extra work. US colleges that are accreditted would not have to make up work, that is the point of accrediation ( which foreign universities often don't have). My kids also had to have their credits from the international programs they attended and the courses were not the same ( of less intensity and quality then their college.).

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