OB nurses are mean?

[Cass19911]

Hi all,

i am a unit secretary on postpartum and labor. I've found that most (not all I must emphasize) ob nurses are really rude and just plain mean. I've talk to my best friend who's an ob nurse and she said that they are mean where she is and my other friend who is an RT said they're mean to her too at a diff hospital. The other secretary's say that you just have to grow thick skin and give the attitude back but I feel like that's a waste of my time. I've worked in a lot of other setting in the medical field and haven't dealt with this type of attitude before. Anyone else deal w mean nurses?

[jodispamodi]

yup nurses eat their young and they chew up and spit out their coworkers, be the bigger person. Giving attitude back does not reflect well and you dont who may be listening and will only hear YOUR response. So be the bigger person, always be professional, say thank you and please. In your head call them anything you want but never out loud. Believe me the powers that be ard aware of their poor interpersonal skills and seeing you keep your cool will only reflect positively on you. Good Luck.

[labordude, BSN, RN]

Let's just call this what it is...bullying. Nursing is a haven for bullying and hazing and other disruptive behaviors. They are destructive, unnecessary, and cause huge adverse impacts to morale, cohesion, and learning. There are a multitude of factors that have created this situation, but a combination of poor top down leadership and bottom up ineffective communication skills are the largest contributors. jodispamodi's suggestion does get you through situations, but it doesn't change anything in the long run. Part of the reason people are afraid to respond is that they are unsure of their own (previously mentioned) communication skills. There are ways to respond that identify the unprofessional behavior making it known that it won't be tolerated, but also ensuring that it can't be twisted around. Direct bullying is only one issue, I would bet that these same nurses gossip and talk about other people and things as well. Since no one shuts down negative verbalizations at that time, they will also continue. As you can tell, I'm pretty passionate about making nursing better by removing some of the destructive behaviors we have become known for in professional circles. It can be done, I don't care if Nurse Sarah is "set in her way" or Nurse Annie is "the power holder." At the end of the day, that only means that their behavior seeks to negatively impact the ability of myself and my unit to care for patients and I will never tolerate that.

*Names have been changed to protect the innocent and the guilty*