Nursing Drama

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Has anyone ever been in a situation where they felt that managers and administration turn the nurses against each other? I currently work in a facility where indidividuals are encouraged to tattle and when they do, instead of getting both sides, one person ends up getting scolded or lectured or the issue is addressed at staff meetings in a manner that everyone knows who she is talking about. It is getting old and I personally feel unprofessional. The manager is now questioning why people are leaving and everyone is in turmoil. To me it is pretty simple. Unless patient safety is involved, staff should be encouraged to discuss things like adults rather than constantly getting in trouble over high school drama. I only have about 1.5 years left there due to other engagements so I don't really feel like starting a new job is an option. Just looking for opinions on what others have done or suggest! Thanks!

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Specializes in Psych (25 years), Medical (15 years).
Has anyone ever been in a situation where they felt that managers and administration turn the nurses against each other? I currently work in a facility where indidividuals are encouraged to tattle and when they do, instead of getting both sides, one person ends up getting scolded or lectured or the issue is addressed at staff meetings in a manner that everyone knows who she is talking about. It is getting old and I personally feel unprofessional. The manager is now questioning why people are leaving and everyone is in turmoil.

Do we work together, FloatRN? At Wrongway Regional Medical Center?

Honestly, the quoted portion of your post fits the place where I work to a tee. I could give you numerous stories as examples to each area.

Suffice it to say that I deal with it by doing my job and objectively documenting every anomalistic situation. Administrators are the big game. They tend to paly the "Do as we say and not as we do" game and I call them on it constantly and consistently.

There are no guarantees or insurance, but I keep everything honest and up front and this tact has buoyed me through many a situation, and gives me peace in its practise.

Good luck to you, FloatRN!

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Specializes in Primary Care, LTC, Private Duty.
Do we work together, FloatRN? At Wrongway Regional Medical Center?

Honestly, the quoted portion of your post fits the place where I work to a tee. I could give you numerous stories as examples to each area.

Suffice it to say that I deal with it by doing my job and objectively documenting every anomalistic situation. Administrators are the big game. They tend to paly the "Do as we say and not as we do" game and I call them on it constantly and consistently.

There are no guarantees or insurance, but I keep everything honest and up front and this tact has buoyed me through many a situation, and gives me peace in its practise.

Good luck to you, FloatRN!

Are you sure we don't ALL work together? Hahaha!

To go into specifics would be to basically identify myself (I think...though hearing all of your stories makes me think that the situation was NOT just unique to my facility after all...and I don't quite know whether I should be glad that that's the case or not!), but our administration would: pit CNAs against nurses, basically taking any and all authority from the nurses and giving it to the CNAs (like telling the aides to "report back" to them if they thought the nurses were "stepping out of line" with x,y, or z); pit nurses against nurses by disciplining minor infractions but not disciplining major ones; and pitting shift against shift by encouraging each shift to tattle to administration when work wasn't done---for whatever reason---rather than deal with it nurse-to-nurse or aide-to-aide.

Administration, like you both said, is more interested in getting one side of the story and running with that, rather than listening to both sides. Then they, rather than keeping informants and concerns confidential, spread what was said by whom throughout the entire facility. :sarcastic: Very professional....

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Oh it is exhausting but it is somewhat scary and comforting like you mentioned to know that others deal with this. In my leadership course I was taught to lead, not to be a dictator. I think the issue may be that has never had a leadership course. It is definitely my way or the highway with her. And one CNA pretty much runs the show at our facility because she knows what's best(major sarcasm) and runs and tattles, making the story much more elaborate than it is. I have all the respect in the world for my aids but they shouldn't get to make decisions that an RN should be making.

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Specializes in Medical-Surgical/Float Pool/Stepdown.

I'm lucky that as a float I have amazing management...but the attributes of the floor managers really do vary. Thankfully I mostly only answer to my management staff and tend to stay out of each floors drama.

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Specializes in Psych, Corrections, Med-Surg, Ambulatory.

Been there; done that. The tattler is the one telling the truth. The tattled-on is expected to produce a mea culpa. Complaints are anonymous; if you discredit the story it becomes "Actually, several people have complained about you." One nurse tried to canvass her coworkers so she could make amends. She was then told she wasn't allowed to do that.

Eventually most of us began to see through this crap, but the habitual tattlers continued to run with it. The facility would conduct morale surveys and everyone would respond that morale was low. Then the manager would call a meeting to ask how "we" can improve morale.

I don't work in that place anymore, and neither does that manager. But I quit attending parties thrown by my old coworkers because someone always invites her. No thanks.

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Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.

We have all worked for such managers in our careers, if we have been at this very long. Fortunately, the worst offender I worked for, was actually tossed out on her ear after the staff UNIFIED and stopped her madness and documented everything she did. Then, the most articulate and cool-headed experienced staff approached the CNO and Chief of Staff with their written complaints, calmly----- and displayed why this manager was dangerous for unit morale and safety. She was fired the next week.

So, you see, sometimes if you can get good people to join together, and NOT give in to the temptation to play the game, the good guys can and do win.

If not, and it continues, you are in a toxic environment and have to ask yourself if it's worth it to stay; is it really worth your sanity, your happiness, and even your health.

If the answer is no, and it has been for me in the past, then you make a brave move and get out. It may mean less pay, or different hours or a new specialty. But you do it. And you are happier again.

Good luck.

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Specializes in Psych, Corrections, Med-Surg, Ambulatory.
We have all worked for such managers in our careers, if we have been at this very long. Fortunately, the worst offender I worked for, was actually tossed out on her ear after the staff UNIFIED and stopped her madness and documented everything she did. Then, the most articulate and cool-headed experienced staff approached the CNO and Chief of Staff with their written complaints, calmly----- and displayed why this manager was dangerous for unit morale and safety. She was fired the next week.

So, you see, sometimes if you can get good people to join together, and NOT give in to the temptation to play the game, the good guys can and do win.

If not, and it continues, you are in a toxic environment and have to ask yourself if it's worth it to stay; is it really worth your sanity, your happiness, and even your health.

If the answer is no, and it has been for me in the past, then you make a brave move and get out. It may mean less pay, or different hours or a new specialty. But you do it. And you are happier again.

Good luck.

Can't "like" this one enough. It is no small feat to get everyone together and be unified. Most people are happy to shrink back and keep letting the same few go out on a limb.

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Yep...

I know exactly where you coming from. I wanna so badly asked you if you aren't by any chance working at... but I can't say the name of the hospital.

Incompetent manager - she never dealt with ICU before, has no clue what is happening, titrations, codes and so on, but that bad itch, the desire to grab power, seems just irresistible to her, she is pouring more oil into old fire - backstabbing coworkers are given ears. So if before we had issue with malicious people trying to get some other nurse into trouble... now they got very fertile soil to grow on.

This manager loves complains, she loves people to come and tell on others, she urges them, she threaten the few who said they will not come to "inform her every day on what so and so had done, and what the other one said..." It is beyond sick there. Daily drama over stickers on IV's, and someone did not chart they emptied urine collection bag... and for those things, people would be staying longer, being called to office, or nightshifters would get phone call at 1 pm...

People talking about each other...

It is sick place. I do not know remedy. I wish I would

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Unfortunately, I have decided to walk away from the facility as it has become to much for me to handle. I refuse to compromise my morals for a job and see people reprimanded for petty things. It is a whole new field but I am excited to start off fresh. Unfortunately since my resignation there has been more picking at me by my supervisor. Counting down the shifts!

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

Moved to another forum for more answers.

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I think I have worked on your ward! For various personal reasons I also was unable to quit. I did swap to nightshift to avoid my toxic manager and life was instantly better.

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