Older nurses eating the young? Maybe it's the opposite...

[Gamecock73]

We are taught in school that "nurses eat their young". But I have found the opposite to be true, and that it's more personality-driven.

I joined a busy med-surg floor in a rural hospital earlier this year. I was delighted to find a couple of months ago that a former PCS at a previous employer of mine was coming to work night-shift on the floor with me. Although I had worked with this nurse of 30+ years sporadically at two different employers, I always remembered her as adept, very energetic, and willing to help others.

Although taught in common nursing wisdom that nurses eat their young”, I find I am encountering the opposite.

Said older nurse is being asked to join a rotation with younger nurses, who are decidedly unhelpful to her and others they are not friends with. The charge nurse” is very young, maybe a year or so out of nursing school on that rotation, and while she's helpful to me, she and her friends have taken an apparent dislike to the new kid on the block”. The older nurse has felt the animosity, bristles at it, and while I'd give her every bit her due not to help anyone else, she still offers to help her podmates and others on the other hall who appear to be swamped.

The nurse told me last night she'd helped another older nurse the weekend before on seeing the other nurse was drowning and getting no help, more being laughed at than anything. Whether the young crew realizes it (or maybe they do, and that's why they're hostile), this nurse was brought on to give them strength of nursing knowledge. Because that particular rotation is full of young nurses. Maybe not young in age, but less experienced.

This is exactly the kind of nurse they need on their rotation, but they have made up their minds that she's so experienced, she'll never need a hand. And she's seen enough to know when people are gunning for her. I know all the parties involved, the quirks, the personalities. I get along with everyone, because I don't put ego or emotion into stuff. I'm wondering if I voice my thoughts to our manager, will it help at all?

I'm a bit gun-shy of talking to managers, no matter how nice my current one appears to be. Things have a way of filtering back to the floor, and egos get bent out of shape. Which would also impact MY working relationship, as I seem to be stuck between two different rotations at present.

My question to the older nurses is this: Do you have a problem working with younger nurses? If so, what are they? And how can I best bridge the gap?

[VANurse2010]

For your sanity and career, stay out of it. I know it's tempting to defend your friends, but at the end of the day the experienced nurse has to handle this situation herself. Unless they start falsely accusing her of things you know for a fact to be false, keep your mouth shut.

[ArtClassRN, ADN, RN]

The best thing to do is model the behaviour you want to see in others. If they don't like it to hell with them. At least you get to go home everyday knowing you did the best you could.

[Not_A_Hat_Person, RN]

And now for another exciting round of "every nurse younger or less experienced than me is a spoiled, incompetent, entitled special snowflake."

It's odd how older, experienced nurses are allowed to vent about mistreatment, but younger or less experienced nurses aren't.

[Farawyn]

And now for another exciting round of "every nurse younger or less experienced than me is a spoiled, incompetent, entitled special snowflake."

It's odd how older, experienced nurses are allowed to vent about mistreatment, but younger or less experienced nurses aren't.

Outside of the OP, no one has really "bit" yet. Preemptive ^ in your eye rolling.

Me: I haven't had problems as a young RN or as an old(er) RN. Most nurses I've worked with have been great.

[SmilingBluEyes]

I find that NO ONE is allowed to vent about "nurse eating" on either end without commentary or criticism; however deserved or not.

Much more discounted, is the younger nurse eating the older one situation, in my experience. Many think it's impossible for experienced, older nurses to do this to the young, tender ones who can't defend themselves against such crusty old bats.