Racism in Nursing

[lpnnursingstudent33]

I am a Cardiac Monitor Technicican at the best facility in a suburban facility. I've been there 5 years. It used to be a big trauma center, but they had to merge with upmc so it is just a community hospital basically it is a nursing home with a E.R. But anyway i'm African American and I want to be a nurse. I have been in the Nursing field for the last ten years of my life. Working in this field with the majority of the field being middle aged white women and the new white 21-30 year old girls. It is very hard working with these people especially when the are so prejudice or bias. They try to make you feel inferior or something. It's like they can't stand the fact that i want to be a nurse or that i have the facility paying my way to become a nurse. I mean i never knew how much racism there is in this field until i started working in the field. It is very said. It is even with patient care. I see why there is such a huge health desparity. It is crazy. I know because i see it everyday. I hear nurses say BAD things all day about their patients. Make bad jokes about the patients, STEROtype patients, judge their patients. A lot of the nurses i work with are just down right rude to their patients. I can't actually say it is seems to mean that a lot of the nurses are burned out but can't afford to retire or just don't want to. Some nurse on my floor have been there for over 30 years. Some don't even own stethoscopes on a critical care floor. Now how said is that.

Anyway sometimes i find myself getting intimidated of these people but i have never seen a group of evil spirited people. Some of them just make me sick. But on the other hand there are some excellent nurses there too. That actually care about their patients no matter what status they are or what color. That's the kind of nurse i will become.

This is 2008 and i think it is time to shape up or get out of the business. I quess there will always be health care desparitites i don't know but i will try to make a difference once i become a rn.

[CHATSDALE]

you said that facility was paying your way in school

i have seen people who were absolutely rabid when it came to people who were luckier than they are

one male lpn was given a tution grant and work hours planned about school hours, he also got a grant as a minority [male] in nursing..he was a outstanding nurse and went on to get bs in nursing but i can still remember the venom that his privileges stirred in this one particular nurse, use to hate to work with her because she could always steer the conversation about how rough she was having it

[GadgetRN71, ASN, RN]

I remember what a nurse I worked with said to me when I was taking classes towards my RN..."There will always be some of them that are waiting for you to fail". I heard lots of negativity and I'm caucasian. I think the OP is valid in her concerns. Nursing instructors can be very racist as well. In their eyes, if you aren't white and fresh out of high school, you have no business being there. Single parents and those of us who were older or worked experienced problems as well.

There is still racism in this country and there will always be bigoted people..I hope the OP doesn't let these ignorant people stop her from her dreams. It may be a cliche, but living well truly is the best revenge. OP, I wish you the best:cheers:

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

I simply wanted to comment: I happen to think it's wonderful that the majority of the posters have been supportive and insightful regarding the workplace plight of the OP. This thread is one of numerous that truly embodies the caring spirit of nurses. To the general membership, I want to shout, "Thanks for understanding!"

[luv4nursing]

Im sorry that my comment is a little unrelated, but it reminded me of when I was in RN school during a Psych rotation and my clinical group was sitting in on group. A very angry Schitzo psych patient who was Hispanic became irate with our instructor...he stood up and loudly yelled across the room, pointing at me...."WHY is SHE the only black one!?!?!?!?"......"NOOOOOO I WANNA KNOWWWWW! WHY IS SHE THE ONLY BLACK ONE!!!!!!!!!????????"...lol.

On a serious note, as a minority nurse you will find some people to be shocked and fascinated that YOU are a nurse. Not the cleaning lady, not the tech, but a nurse. (not that there is anything wrong with that, but some folks have it set in their minds that those are supposed to be our jobs). Its interesting that there is such a stereotype because all of my black female friends are professionals (teachers,pharmacists, lawyers,etc,etc).

When u get into nursing school, dont be suprised if u have a black instructor and she gives u an extra hard time as a black student. She will only be preparing you for the real world. I didnt appreciate it then, but Im sure I will in the future. She often told me that I couldnt be average and had to go above and beyond just to be considered equal. Unfortunately as much as I hate to admit it, she was right. If you think u will have it hard, just imagine how it was for these older black nurses...back then there were hardly any in the profession. They had to be very strong to endure what they probably went through. Most of the older, black RNs Ive met are awesome nurses, too. They had to be.

[leslie :-D]

luv4nursing said:

Most of the older, black RNs I've met are awesome nurses, too. They had to be.

I have found this to be so very true.

and I generally do not stereotype, but when I think of all the older nurses I know, every single older, black nurse, has been superior.

truthfully, it never dawned on me they were such, r/t having to prove themselves.

I appreciate the insight.

leslie

[CHATSDALE]

this is a wonderful world

women and their dtrs can be anything they are capable of doing no matter what their color, weight etc these are things which do not enter in the scope of living

[kukukajoo, LPN]

Sometimes when you look at a situation differently, you see it in a another way. Are you CERTAIN all this is based on race alone and not other factors as I really don't see much in your post that defines anything racist but rather, as othe posters have said, the sometimes mindset of certain people that their position makes them superior.

Somtimes it has NOTHING to do with color, although some posters have given examples of some that certainly are racist and bigoted to say the least. Nobody should have this happen to them. Not becuase of color, age or how young/old you APPEAR to be, etc. The only concern appearance EVER should have is wether you look professional and carry yourself professionaly and by this I mean do you take care of yourselves and treat others around you with the respect and kindness that you would want? I would hate to have a nurse take care of me whose own hair is a mess and clohting in bad shape, dirty, wrinked, etc. If they cant care for themselves, HOW CAN THEY CARE FOR ME??

I also see in your post, that you are a little judgemental yourself and may even be lumping all white new nurses into a certain group, which could itself be construed as a type of racism. I undertand it was probably a vent, but do you realize that many new nurses come out school thinking they know all and can do no wrong? Of course, soon these nurses are put in their respective places and realize they will be FOREVER learning in nursing and in life. Their "I just graduated and I am great" attitude catches up with them pretty darned quick.

You have five years experience in a healthcare setting. You have your future being paved by the company, and you are going to come out with an advantage over MANY nurses just starting out- no loans, a ready made job, and experience within facility and understanding of the politics, etc. You have a lot to look forward to.

I am wondering if maybe the way you have presented the fact that the hospital is paying your education is a little off putting and that may be contributing to the animosity between you and your co workers? I think I would be a little envious of a nurse who was in this position, and if this nurse continually brought this up again and again in a way that made her appear to think she was better than me and the rest, I might get a bit cranky. Personally, your financial situaion is yours and yours alone, no need to discuss this with co workers, some of who may be struggling financially.

Remember Perception is reality. How you see things, is how they are going to be for you.

I remember an old boss- HUGE German Engineer, President of the company I worked for. Very precise, and his very prescence and almost abrubt, and was VERY intimidating. I was sooooo scared of this guy the first few weeks, afraid to say boo to him or get on his bad side or make a mistake, I was so uncomfortable. Then one day his wife walked in- was a friends mother, 18 years his junior. She was a peach- a sweet lovley lady and a bit showy. I knew then, that if he had her as a wife, he HAD to be a teddy bear and I was no longer in fear of him. My OWN perception changed- that was the only thing that changed. NOTHING ELSE DID, But in the course of this happening, I lost all the stress and fear I had regarding this job and he was one of the best bosses I ever had. I no longer feared approaching him with a question, or feared making a mistake, etc.

I guess my point is, if you can change your perception sometimes things can change dramatically for you.

Hope it all works out for you- you have a great career on the way!

[banditrn]

To the OP - I'm sorry you feel that way. When I started at the hospital where I worked for many years, one of the most important women there was a black woman. Thru the years, I've worked with many others, and I never heard anything racist in connection with any of them from any of the staff - except for one particular nurse - and it was just a warning that if she didn't get her way about things, she would yell 'racism'.

Sadly, after long observation, that IS what she would do. Which was a shame, because she was a good nurse, with years of experience.

Maybe it depends on where you come from. I just know that we had many people there of many different races and they all seemed to work well together.

[Agnus]

lpnnursingstudent33 said:

I am a Cardiac Monitor Technicican at the best facility in a suburban facility. I've been there 5 years. It used to be a big trauma center, but they had to merge with upmc so it is just a community hospital basically it is a nursing home with a E.R. But anyway I'm African American and I want to be a nurse. I have been in the Nursing field for the last ten years of my life. Working in this field with the majority of the field being middle aged white women and the new white 21-30 year old girls. It is very hard working with these people especially when the are so prejudice or bias. They try to make you feel inferior or something. It's like they can't stand the fact that I want to be a nurse or that I have the facility paying my way to become a nurse. I mean I never knew how much racism there is in this field until I started working in the field. It is very said. It is even with patient care. I see why there is such a huge health desparity. It is crazy. I know because I see it everyday. I hear nurses say BAD things all day about their patients. Make bad jokes about the patients, STEROtype patients, judge their patients. A lot of the nurses I work with are just down right rude to their patients. I can't actually say it is seems to mean that a lot of the nurses are burned out but can't afford to retire or just don't want to. Some nurse on my floor have been there for over 30 years. Some don't even own stethoscopes on a critical care floor. Now how said is that.

Anyway sometimes I find myself getting intimidated of these people but I have never seen a group of evil spirited people. Some of them just make me sick. But on the other hand there are some excellent nurses there too. That actually care about their patients no matter what status they are or what color. That's the kind of nurse I will become.

This is 2008 and I think it is time to shape up or get out of the business. I quess there will always be health care desparitites I don't know but I will try to make a difference once I become a RN.

Sounds like you are talking about the human race.

It is not just this profession.

Please, look closely there is one unsuspecting person who does not realize she is sterotyping and generalizing about one segment of the population. Welcome to the humanrace.

[elliejayRN]

I would love to say things will be better once you are a nurse, that would be a lie.

luv4nursing "She often told me that I couldnt be average and had to go above and beyond just to be considered equal."

kukukajoo "Remember Perception is reality. How you see things, is how they are going to be for you. "

I graduated Cum Laude, International Honor Society, passed the NCLEX immediately after graduation with 75 questions in little over 2 hours. (colleagues didn't know any of this.) Secured a nice graduate nurse position with a magnet hospital, I was terminated in 2 mos.

I saw and heard about my lighter colleagues making mistakes, those being chocked up to inexperience, global error or she's experienced she can do that, whatever. Basically for a lighter colleague they will always be right and you my dear, better shut up fall in line, and accept we live in one racist society. Oh, it would be so much easier if they were conscious of it. They could stop it then, but their racist acts/comments/perception are usually unconscious; it, however, feels blatant to the recipient.

Our nursing profession is majority white female, this feat is not accidental, it takes great skill, a great deal of denial and collaboration. Equal rights for white women, not all women. Some are real clever about getting around the ol EEOC/Affirmative action, they'd hire you, but if you quit, hey they tried; you actually quitting is irrelevant, huh!

If only the profession of nursing were to only be about the business of caring competently for patients. Nurses shared and cared to teach those different from themselves openly and challenged those negative perceptions of others, this would be utopia!! Toughen that skin, Agnus is right this is the humanrace. However, it doesn't feel like we are equal when it comes to emotional pain inflicted by racism does it?

[elliejayRN]

Anyway OP, we also have to be cognizant of same race discrimination too. We make those quick perceptions about us too. I use to lock my car door whenever a black man walked by too. Now I don't but it was a conscious effort to not do it.

Hope you're studying for you BSN then MSN, because ADN, IMHO find is a real joke when you're black, competence is irrelevant. You're still fighting to overcome those negative race perceptions compounded by an ADN, don't waste your time! :icon_hug:

Jane Elliott's experiment- brown eyes vs blue eyes

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/divided/talk/index2.html

Racial disparity in healthcare

https://www.ahrq.gov/patient-safety/resources/index.html#Inequality

[dopaminequeenRN]

Maybe this little story will give you some encouragement.....Picture it, southern Arkansas, 1982. My little two-year old sister in the tiny county hospital with pneumonia. My scared parents who are in their early 20's at her side. My sister is, of course, hard to console at this age. Nurse after nurse gets frustrated with her and seems aggrivated every time they have to come into the room, or give her any medicine. She won't eat, drink, or speak. My parents don't know what to do or what to expect. One night, a black nurse is assigned to her. This nurse offers her ice cream (none of the other ones took the time to do this). The black nurse sang to my sister and managed to get the meds down her. My sister cried when the other nurses took care of her, but not when "Nurse Bea" was there. My sister is 25 now. She still loves to hear my mom tell her about the time she was in the hospital. I can't imagine the challenges this nurse faced--It was 1982, 95% of her co-workers were white, AND she was a travel nurse so you know she probably didn't know anyone at this hospital. My sister is now a nurse and I know "Nurse Bea" would be proud!