Is dating or flirting with an another nurse or patient is acceptable?

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

Published

Not in the nursing program yet, from experience when i was volunteering at a hospital dudes was flirting with me and a patient even took me on a date, so in the nursing field is flirting or even dating is acceptable with an another nurse or even a patient:kiss? if so, what is the limits to keep a nurse name clean? can nurses have a social life with other co workers outside of the work place.please tell me your experience if you had one? or whatever your thoughts on it.:)

Specializes in Psych ICU, addictions.

Dating a patient certainly isn't illegal...however it is not always the most ethical decision--in fact, more often that not it is a poor one. Also, depending on the policies at your facility, you could end up losing your job.

Dating coworkers...again, not illegal. Again, you could lose your job depending on where you work. As for the ethics...that's more of a grey area since there's more factors that could play into it. And it could make for a very interesting--or awkward--nursing environment.

Yes, there are the "happily ever after" stories--including several from members at the forum--where nurse and patient/coworker overcame all odds to have a successful relationship. But I'll be willing to wager that these are the exceptions and not the norm...and I'll also bet it involved at least one party having to find a new facility to work/go to.

0 Votes
Specializes in Cardiac intermediate care.

To add to all the good advice from above, don't sleep with doctors, either. Your fellow nurses will totally lose respect for you, and you won't be taken seriously as a professional. This was not my experience, but it was the case with a nurse in my workplace. She came to be known as the nurse who wanted to be a "Dr. Mrs.," even though sleeping around wasn't going to get her there.

0 Votes
Specializes in Emergency & Trauma/Adult ICU.
Not in the nursing program yet, from experience when i was volunteering at a hospital dudes was flirting with me and a patient even took me on a date, so in the nursing field is flirting or even dating is acceptable with an another nurse or even a patient:kiss? if so, what is the limits to keep a nurse name clean? can nurses have a social life with other co workers outside of the work place.please tell me your experience if you had one? or whatever your thoughts on it.:)

Bold emphasis is mine.

So you've already crossed this important boundary, and are just now asking if it's acceptable?

Think long and hard about your personal definition of professionalism, and whether or not a career field requiring detachment, professional deportment, and verbal skills including language easily understood by all is right for you at this time.

0 Votes
Specializes in CCRN, ED, Unit Manager.

Patient?! That crosses a boundary for me, and that says something!

0 Votes

Never, never, never and I repeat...NEVER date a patient. That is totally unprofessional, completely unethical and more than likely against any policy in any facility you may ever work for. As far as dating a coworker?? Ever heard the saying "Don't dip your pen in the company ink?" The key word is "don't".

0 Votes
Specializes in geriatrics.

Dating, or accepting ANY sort of gift from patients or families is against professional ethics. You can lose your license. Dating anyone at work is also never wise. Keep work at work. I've learned over the years that it's never advisable to mix business.

0 Votes
Specializes in Complex pedi to LTC/SA & now a manager.

Just a quick staff reminder to stay on topic and not redirect the thread to discussion about TV medical dramas. This post is about the appropriateness of dating a patient or coworker. A few off topic posts have been removed. Thank you.

0 Votes

There's a saying: There may be many fish in the sea, but don't fish off the company pier.

0 Votes

If you want to know how to keep your name clean, in any job, go to work and do your job! Don't worry about social stuff.

The patient thing seems like a no-brainer to me. Socializing with coworkers (and I mean non-dating socializing), that will probably be up to you. But take caution! If you want to go to the club with coworkers, just know that there will be a chance that everyone at work will know what happened the next day. I don't hang out with coworkers as a general rule. I have had a few exceptions, but these were people that I had a good connection with and I usually didn't hang out with them until we had worked together for some time.

0 Votes

Plain and Simple No, Besides why would you even want to date an old patient.. It's not worth it..

0 Votes

It's interesting that wanting to be a nurse and realizing how rigorous it is to get in, and the hard work that is needed to get through the program, that you would be concerned with dating other nurses or patients. Dating patients is absolutely unethical which it seems that perhaps you do not have a full understanding of. You should consider your priorities and maybe wait a bit before you apply. Give yourself a chance to mature and work on your communication skills. I wish you luck

2daag

0 Votes
Specializes in Psych ICU, addictions.
It's interesting that wanting to be a nurse and realizing how rigorous it is to get in, and the hard work that is needed to get through the program, that you would be concerned with dating other nurses or patients. Dating patients is absolutely unethical which it seems that perhaps you do not have a full understanding of. You should consider your priorities and maybe wait a bit before you apply. Give yourself a chance to mature and work on your communication skills. I wish you luck

2daag

I don't necessarily think it's an inappropriate question. The reality is that there will be patients and/or other nurses that will flirt with the OP. The OP can't control that. So better the OP know from the get-go about the ethics and downsides of those actions, so they can preserve their own integrity and professionalism.

Otherwise the OP could find themselves in trouble with employers for crossing boundaries they may have thought were acceptable. And of course, with the way flirting can work, the OP could end up falling hard and "following their heart"...which can be asking for trouble because as it's been proven many times in history, the heart--as well as select other organs--are often incapable of thinking.

0 Votes
+ Add a Comment