One thing that is nails on chalkboard to me is when I hear my fellow nurses use double negatives and other blatant grammar mistakes. I'm speaking of English as a first language, domestically born and raised people.
I feel as this detracts from the professional image of nursing. We are supposed to be educated professionals. Poor grammar makes nursing look like a blue collar trade to those who are educated, such as our physicians and many members of the public.
Let me clarify that I don't harshly judge the intelligence or moral character of people with poor grammar. But, I feel strongly that nurses should project an image of being educated professionals in our speech and demeanor. Thanks for reading.
One thing that is nails on chalkboard to me is when I hear my fellow nurses use double negatives and other blatant grammar mistakes. I'm speaking of English as a first language, domestically born and raised people.
I feel as this detracts from the professional image of nursing. We are supposed to be educated professionals. Poor grammar makes nursing look like a blue collar trade to those who are educated, such as our physicians and many members of the public.
Let me clarify that I don't harshly judge the intelligence or moral character of people with poor grammar. But, I feel strongly that nurses should project an image of being educated professionals in our speech and demeanor. Thanks for reading.
Many nurses have lived up to the low standards set before them. Poor grammar is only one symptom-
Specializes in ER, ICU, Infusion, peds, informatics.
regarding the use of "et" for "and"... i work on a psych unit and soap note on paper. everyone (and i mean everyone) uses et instead of and when writing. i had never seen this before when i started working there (5 years ago) but i did it just because everyone else did and now i can't stop. i even use it when i am writing notes to my husband and it drives him crazy. (it also makes him mad when i use c with a line over it for "with" and a triangle for "change".)
i actually asked at work and supposedly the medical director had everyone start doing it years ago because "et" is latin for the word "and", and he felt it was more appropriate in medical charting. i guess it has just stuck, even though he is gone.
still drives me crazy :) .
the "et" for "and" and many of the other gramatical errors that really get to me (their/there/they're, to/two/too) bother me because my brain doesn't recognize the intended meaning. the statement doesn't end up making senese to me when i first read it.
i have to pause, go back, and reread what was written.
however, i can't spell worth a darn. i really do try to check. sometimes spelling errors get to me because i figure that if i noticed it, it must be obvious .
it is definitely one thing that i hate about computer charting. makes those spelling errors so much more obvious.
sometimes, when i'm in triage and typing up the triage note, i can't figure out how to spell some symptom or condition. then i have to either just give up and go with how it might be spelled, or i have to try to figure out how to describe the complaint without using that word. "eczema" was a killer -- how else do you desribe it? thankfully, "hemorrhoids," which also gives me trouble, has guidelines in our fast-track manual, so i can look it up there.
one trick i have learned is that if you type a misspelled word into "google," it will usually say "did you mean _____ ?"
and i'm with everyone on the all-caps thing. ugh. is it that difficult to hit the "shift" key on occasion?
Specializes in FNP, Peds, Epilepsy, Mgt., Occ. Ed.
I was taught to chart that way back in the dark ages... it's a hard habit to break
I also was taught to use "et" for "and" in documentation. It was part of the medical terminology we were expected to learn, along with all those abbreviations we are now not supposed to use.
When I took over the MDS position, I found that whoever was the MDS Coordinator before me didn't use any punctuation at all. We have careplans with four or five sentences with no capital letters and no punctuation. I'm trying to fix that. Today, I had to explain to a nurse that our resident was being uncooperative, not uncooperably. I have a headache.
I cringe thinking what Google would put out in the spotlight in some posts I see every day.
Variations of spoken dialects and local idiosyncracies in proununcation don't usually bother me. But I cannot understand why some people lack the internal "switch" that changes when you put pen to paper or fingers to keyboard.
And while we're on the topic ... I've been a heavy internet user since the early 90s. I've seen plenty of fads of usage in IMs and message board posts come and go. But WHAT is up with the BIZARRE usage of "et" to mean "and"?? It doesn't save a significant amount of typing - using the ampersand character would be faster. Ugghh ... like nails on a chalkboard ...
"Et" is french for "and." I just assumed there were more french people posting.
Yes, my mis-pronunciations, abuse of grammah, Maine-iac-isms, double negatives, and etc. are often an affectation - a way to let people know that I'm having a casual conversation, and sometimes to make someone chuckle.
One of my brothers, who lived in Pensacola FL for all of 6 months about 22 years ago, still has the STRONG smell of a Southern accent. Irritating as all getout. I think it started out as an affectation and is now ingrained. I doubt he even knows that he does it now.
I'm with Tweety, it depends on the context. If I'm with a patient, with close friends, meeting someone for the first time - if I'm writing on the internet, writing a short story or book, editorial, etc., the way I speak/write depends upon what I need to communicate.
I have to say that when someone posts their pet peeves regarding grammar and spelling, inevitably they will misspell a word or make an error in grammar. It's pretty funny to me.
My mom had a tremendous vocabulary. It was hard for me to NOT pick that up - hmm, is that grammatically correct? Anyway, one of Mom's favorite words was "vernacular", and that relates to what I said about context.
I believe that an ability to spell and speak properly is innate, not just dependent upon education and upbringing. Kinda like people who can naturally "do" numbers (I have mathematical dyslexia, I am fond of saying), some can natcherly perform language skills. However, I have tried to find research to document that this understanding is innate, and couldn't find anything. I mean, couldn't find nothing.
I have to confess that I hesitated to write this post, knowing full well that it is going to be inspected w/ a magnifying glass ... lol
BTW - I never used to need to look up the spelling of words, and rarely misspelled them. I also have been able to use grammar correctly without having to look up usages. But in the last 2-3 years, I often have to look up grammar rules and spelling. It's frustrating, because I have always enjoyed writing. Sigh... I sometimes wonder if that is an early sign of dementia ... but I haven't been able to find it documented as a symptom...
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SueBee RN-BSN
232 Posts
Many nurses have lived up to the low standards set before them. Poor grammar is only one symptom-