Patients and the race card

swarner5 · Nov 5, 2010

I am sure if you treat others the way you would want to be treated even when they are not doing so, most situations will resolve themselves.

Don't worry about the Politically correct people who attacked you for this. You are asking a direct question about a possibility you may encounter in the workplace. No one has a right to police your questions. Just remember treat all with dignity and respect in ALL situations. God bless.

lifelearningrn, BSN, RN · Nov 5, 2010

I can say with some certainty that if a member of a minority group were to complain about perceived racism at my hospital, his/her concerns would probably be well founded.
According to the county website, this resort community is 98.3% white, 1.5% Hispanic, .2% other. I hear the "N" word at work all the time (especially in regards to our President, along with openly wishing someone would kill him), and similarily nasty names for anyone of Latin, Middle Eastern, or Jewish background. Oh, and they also hate gay/transgendered people too. I mean really hate them. I know for a fact that known homosexuals get substandard care b/c some of their nurses cannot stand to be near them, I have seen and heard it on multiple occasions. A few years ago a very well known gay man moved here; he is a somewhat famous hair stylist to the starts and he opened up a shop here, trying to cater to the very wealthy tourists (locals cannot afford $175 haircuts). It was vandalized on multiple occasions, and eventually mysteriously burned down. It's disgusting and pervasive. I mention this in case anyone here thinks discrimination or racism is dying out. It's as bad as ever IMO. We make sure to travel often so our kids are exposed to some diversity, and we try to counter all that they hear. We can't move, it's a long story.
I have not ever heard of an instance of any person making a discrimination complaint here. I suspect they are far too intimidated. This is a small community hospital, and I did have a patient last winter transfer to our CCU, by private medi-plane service, from the tertiary care University medical center we generally transfer to. Her plainly stated reason was foreign (Indian, I gathered) physicians and African American nurses. She was very clear that she would prefer care from less qualified whites (no one would argue that our little podunk 25 bed place is a preferred treatment center for AMI) to avoid having those "dirty brown people" touch her. She was 50, not 80.
It's alive and well people, and the tension about race relations is justified. The OP sounded to me like she was looking for ways to diffuse those tensions. My advice is very simple, treat everyone like you want to be treated and leave it at that.

I'm so disgusted that people act like this and it is accepted in the community. I don't understand why so many people want to keep a society that mistreats people because they different. These are also the same people that can't stand the idea of our country progressing with the rest of the world. I wish we could ship all the people like this off to their own island and let them suck the souls out of each other instead of poisoning the general population with their venom.

linearthinker, DNP, RN · Nov 5, 2010

me too

CanadaEh · Nov 5, 2010

This was my first post ever on this website and I have to admit that I was upset that so many responses were so negative and I felt attacked. After the first few responses, I thought that I would never post on here again...not a very good first impression.

I just want to say that we are all professionals and this is a VERY sensitive subject - I thought this would be a safe place to be able to discuss this topic. I have talked with my co-workers and just wanted to expand my knowledge base. I think this website could be a great way for me to reach out to others, share my experiences and learn from others.

I just wanted to thank all of you that have taken the time to read my post and provide advice/share their experiences!!! :yeah:

leslie :-D · Nov 5, 2010

This was my first post ever on this website and I have to admit that I was upset that so many responses were so negative and I felt attacked. After the first few responses, I thought that I would never post on here again...not a very good first impression.
I just want to say that we are all professionals and this is a VERY sensitive subject - I thought this would be a safe place to be able to discuss this topic. I have talked with my co-workers and just wanted to expand my knowledge base. I think this website could be a great way for me to reach out to others, share my experiences and learn from others.
I just wanted to thank all of you that have taken the time to read my post and provide advice/share their experiences!!!

when you're dealing w/such a large membership, you're bound to meet all kinds.

that said, and as a longtime member, i too, was raising an eyebrow to those who posted with a surprised indignance.

the "race card" happens, and can be quite pervasive, depending on where one lives.

if you've never observed/experienced it, i assure you...it exists.

so rather than feign shock and disdain, i encourage those to read, listen and learn.

otherwise, by denying its existence, we continue to suppress important and potential dialogue w/our pts et al.

leslie

bonnett9 · Nov 5, 2010

I wish people would quit pretending they are so above it that they have no idea what the original poster was talking about. I have had poor black people on medicade tell me they think they are holding back on medical services and treatments. In thier minds only white people were getting the good medicines and service. This is not true but many poor people that aren't white think this. So what can sometimes happen is they complain about the service and proceedures thinking everything they get is done in a poor or cheap fashon because they are poor and not pillars of society like all white people are in thier minds.

Fiona59 · Nov 5, 2010

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I'm assuming that the OP is working in Canada by their user name.
Often the cry of racism comes as the final resort for the patient to get what they feel entitled to. A family emptied out the patient nutrition centre of snacks, juice, tea. When advised that the food was for patient consumption only, they were screamed at and told it was traditional in their culture to offer visitors food, but hey the hospital was full of racist nurses because I guess it had never crossed this families thought process to bring food to the hospital, I mean we're not in Mogadishu General.
So, have you been to Mogadishu General?
Personally, I have never been to Somali. The husband has. He and his medic buddies have been in hospitals in Mogadishu, rural Afghanistan, and rural Bosnia. My husband who isn't a nurse has pulled shifts in abanded psychiatric hospitals outside Sarajevo when the staff fled in the 1990s.
To expect hospitals in a country that is host to refugees from around the globe (hell, we even have Americans try to claim refugee status here) to provide food to patients visitors is purely unreasonable.
My son's best friend is Somali. This child's mother is a Doctor. She's worked for Doctor's Without Borders, so I only have the related tales from people who have worked in these places.

SoundofMusic · Nov 5, 2010

Well, I can't say anyone has pulled the race card, but as a white older female, I will have to be honest and say I have encountered some pretty bad reverse discrimination from SOME african-Americans from time to time, and it hurt. I feel that some segments of this group sadly lately seem to harbor a lot of resentment towards whites, and I DO feel our current administration has set our country back in terms of racial relations. Anyone here can flame me away for this -- I will still say it's true. I've been stared at sort of strangely by some muslims, and they tend to make odd requests .... but never treated poorly by them. I've always enjoyed taking care of hispanics, as they are always very appreciative and sweet (although I do not agree w/ those who are here illegally).

That said, I have ALSO been treated very well by members of the AA race -- with no problems whatsoever. I've had cute little AA ladies who've knitted me socks and slippers, given me hugs, prayers, smiles etc, ultra sweet AA older men who are just as easy going as all be. It just all depends on the person and the family I always say. I simply love taking care of little old asian ladies ..they and their families are just so sweet and undemanding.

Indians are ok ...they are very family oriented and tend to hover and fret over their elders. I had to laugh when one of our indian patients took to chanting very loudly on our floor for HOURS ... didn't go too well w/ her white American roommate ...

I was told last week by the family that since I was unable to get the blood of an AA gentleman, that maybe they needed a nurse who "knew how to draw blood from dark skin." I just laughed and got an AA nurse to try it -- turned out she didn't have any luck either because he was elderly and just had very collapsing veins. Still, that mindset was there ... had someone said that in reverse, though -- it would have sounded quite racist.

I don't enjoy taking care of drug users OR drunks from any race, white, black, purple or green. However, I have gotten along famously w/ several AA AND WHITE men who were drug users ...as long as I brought their dilaudid in on time.

Wacky people are wacky ...they can come from ANY race or ethnic background. There is just no logical way I can generalize how anyone will behave. Older white little ladies are some of the meanest little cusses on earth . . . as are older white males ... and then again, they can be angels.

It just all depends ...really. As far as gay men go I find them ok, but their partners tend to be very protective and anxious about them. I had one gay couple who started out great and then by the end of the day one of them was red in the face and stomping his feet at me, he was so angry. But was it because he was gay? No -- he just had a bad temper.

Again, I just don't feel behavior is due to their race, ethnicity or sexual orientation in general. It's more about family, temperament, and upbringing.

jkaee · Nov 5, 2010

when you're dealing w/such a large membership, you're bound to meet all kinds.
that said, and as a longtime member, i too, was raising an eyebrow to those who posted with a surprised indignance.
the "race card" happens, and can be quite pervasive, depending on where one lives.
if you've never observed/experienced it, i assure you...it exists.
so rather than feign shock and disdain, i encourage those to read, listen and learn.
otherwise, by denying its existence, we continue to suppress important and potential dialogue w/our pts et al.
leslie

Thank you, Leslie, very well put. :yeah:

It does exist, and acting indignant towards the OP is only another form of "sweeping it under the rug."

A few years back, I had this happen to me big time at work. It was horrible. And there is nothing more detrimental to staff morale and trust than a problem that gets turned into a race issue.

Racism is a multi-faceted dynamic that affects all people in many different ways. As Leslie said..."read, listen and learn."

pinksugar · Nov 5, 2010

OP, I know exactly what you are referring to. It does happen. I have taken care of some non-white people who have complained that their doctors (not the nursing staff) weren't paying enough attention to them because they weren't white. In reality they weren't paying attention to them because their stress tests, VQ scans, etc. had all come back negative and the doctors were focused on taking care of the actual sick patients on our unit and had already written discharge orders for the walkie-talkie complainers.

heron, ASN, RN · Nov 5, 2010

I'm sorry the OP felt attacked ... but I wonder if she and others really hear how dismissive it sounds to refer to questions of race as "playing the race card".

Yes, race can be used as a blatant attempt to manipulate a situation ... at times.

And yes, race can be an unspoken negative factor in the way some people are treated ... at times.

I agree with the advice that if it is mentioned that we look at our own unspoken assumptions and if one honestly disagrees with the accusation, just carry on.

But to always blow it off as "playing the race card" is just a glib attempt to get ourselves off the hook.

Of course, it's always interesting to note that it's usually a minority member who's accused of "playing" it.

roser13, ASN, RN · Nov 5, 2010

I think I'm one of the inital posters who made OP feel under attack. I certainly didn't mean my post to be an attack.

But I will agree with the above poster (heron) who said that it was more the way the post read than the sentiment expressed that gave me a bad impression. It sounded very cavalier and flippant: "playing the race card," as if a new nurse was already jaded and dismissive about race issues that might arise in her career.

So, OP, my apologies.