Shocked At Nurses Actions Tonight

[PMFB-RN]

I work part time at a local SNF / rehab faciliety. On PM and NOC shift it is staffed with 3 or 4 LPNs and one RN charge nurse (tonight it was me). One of our LPNs is a sweet young girl from a very small town near by. She is in a BSN program to become an RN as well. She was late to work and I assinged her to care for a new admit who is recovering from a serious MVA. She took report and went to meet her patient. She came back out of the room about 5 min later very upset. She demanded to know why I hadn't told her the patient was a muslim in report. I asked her why it mattered. She said that "those people are all trying to kill us!" and she couldn't understand why the patient was even admited or even given medical care in America! She flatly refused to provide care for this person. Nothing I said to her had any affect on her. She actually got angry at me for trying to explain why this person needs and deserves nurses care.

I ended up sending her home without pay and doing to work myself. I am only part time at this place and while I supervise LPNs and CNAs I am not their boss with the power to hire and fire. I did write a letter to the DON explaining the stuation and recomending that the LPN be fired. I also intend to inform our state board of nursing of her actions. I had another LPN who heard the whole thing write down what she had heard and submit it to the DON as well.

I consider her to have abandoned a patient that she had taken report and accepted responsibiliety for.

I understand that she is from a small, all white town and know from previous conversations with her that she has never so much as had a conversation with an african america person or any other minority except the Amish (many in this area). She aslo claims to be a very devout christian and is very involved in her church but I think her attitude is not compatable with nursing.

[imenid37]

To Rach_nc, My daughter is going through this type of thing now at school. I showed her the Op's posting and she said "Yeah, that could be up where I am." In most respects, this is a great facility that she likes a lot. Some people puzzle her w/ how they talk about minorities, people w/ alternative lifestyles, and even how they think women should act. I was pretty naive in not knowing that there are still people in the world of healthcare that still think like this. Even though my hospital is in a small town, people are knowledgeable and sensitive about different groups of people. This doesn't mean they don't have their "opinions". It does mean they can behave in a professional manner. Having been educated in an urban area, I never went through this type of thing in my education or luckily in any of my work environments. Believe me, even in an urban area, there are lots of "opinions" too. It is very interesting to see different people's opinions about this topic. I agree w/ the person who said that "cultural sensitivity" education is usually silly. I know I used to think, heck it's common sense. Now I realize that is not the case for everyone.

[SharonH, RN]

Unless the person was, let's say, in prison, and wrestled down, forced to get those tattoos (it happens, has happened).

Marie, once again my point is that it is not unreasonable to assume that a person who has a swastika has a belief in white supremacy. The fact that there is a possibility that they may have obtained the tattoo against their will in prison does not change that. The issue is whether or not someone is out of line to assume that someone wearing a swastika is a white supremacist. And if I run into someone like that, I play the odds and assume that person is just who they appear to be. If the person wearing the tattoo is not a white supremacist, then surely they understand the symbolism behind it and they understand the reaction to it.

[Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN]

I only posted about the swastika tattoos because i've seen different reasons that people have them, i didn't post it as a debate.

[talaxandra]

PMFB-RN: have you had any responses about this from your co-workers?

[TrudyRN]

This gal is obviously in the wrong profession. I don't see anywhere in the Nurse Practice Act where we are allowed to pick and choose our patients based on their Nationality. You did the right thing.

Muslim is not nationality. It is religion.

[TrudyRN]

no you can not ever safely assume anything about anyone! for centuries before it was appropriated by the nazis, the swastika was a symbol of good luck and prosperity. almost every race, religion and continent honored the swastika. there are even swastikas found in ancient jewish synagogues side-by-side with the star of david.

"american pilots used it on their planes when they fought for the french in world war one, it was the symbol for the ladies home journal sponsored girls' club and the boy scouts. a town in ontario was named swastika in 1911 because of a lucky gold strike. during world war i, the swastika could even be found on the shoulder patches of the american 45th division and on the finnish air force until after world war ii. now, those who use the swastika are largely neo-fascists who do not mind too much about its terrible history." www.dpjs.co.uk/swasticross.html

what is it that you assume you know about hitler, the swastika and what message it conveys? if you didn't live it you don't really know squat about what went on in regards to hitler and wwii. i'm glad you don't know. i wish i didn't.

according to what i have read about wicca and freemasonry, the swastika and the pentagram (star) are related to devil worship. no offense to anyone, that's just what i have read.

[firstyearstudent]

This person isn't fit for nursing. I don't think education or rehabilitation could help. I think she just doesn't "get it." In my book, you don't withhold nursing care to anyone for just about any reason (except, possibilty, that the patient is of sound mind and doesn't want care or doing so would put your life in danger). It doesn't matter who or what the person is or believes. Let's say, insanely, that the LPN is correct and that Muslims are murderous and involved in a conspiracy to kill Americans. You still wouldn't withhold nursing care...

Then again, perhaps she is just sincerely frightened that this sick woman will try to kill her. In that case she's just too stupid to be a nurse.

[dream'n, BSN, RN]

Forgive me Tweety, your responses were articulate to the Veteran and I wasn't speaking of those. You do sound compassionate, yet were able to logically state your feelings. Again, your posts were not what I was addressing. I didn't want to name names, and I really am sorry you thought I was posting about you, I wasn't. I have read many of your postings and like your attitude very much.

But on topic, the LPN was wrong, very wrong. All patient's deserve our best nursing care and judgement of someone's religion/ethnicity has no place in nursing. I hope the LPN thought about her reaction to the situation this weekend and perhaps will be willing to listen to some reasoning.

[TrudyRN]

This person isn't fit for nursing. I don't think education or rehabilitation could help. I think she just doesn't "get it." In my book, you don't withhold nursing care to anyone for just about any reason (except, possibilty, that the patient is of sound mind and doesn't want care or doing so would put your life in danger). It doesn't matter who or what the person is or believes. Let's say, insanely, that the LPN is correct and that Muslims are murderous and involved in a conspiracy to kill Americans. You still wouldn't withhold nursing care...

Then again, perhaps she is just sincerely frightened that this sick woman will try to kill her. In that case she's just too stupid to be a nurse.

Not fit for nursing because she holds a certain view? She simply should have been given a different patient and later, when there was time, educated that the world is a big place, filled with all kinds of people. I hate to think that our profession requires us to agree with any and every viewpoint. We ARE people, after all, with our own hurts, histories, pains. WE are also entitled to some common courtesy, like not being forced to care for someone who just is not someone we can safely care for. The LPN flipped out, the RN OP did, too, and this whole issue has been blown out of proportion. Education is the key.

As for caring for someone who is trying to kill me or my countrymen - well, I would care for my countrymen first. I'd be basically decent to the enemy, so as not to degrade my own humanity, but I would not necessarily go out of my way to go the extra mile for them. The problem presented by the OP is that both she and the LPN flipped out. If the LPN had quietly said she had a problem it would have helped the RN stay calm and deal rationally with the mess and maybe later try to probe the LPN's view and educate/help her try to view things differently. The real trouble is that the patient might not have been Muslim at all. Maybe the LPN just went by name or appearance. Then she assumed that those factors meant that this sick person was a terrorist, which means she needs some help discerning who is a patient in a hospital and who is a terrorist trying to harm her or her country.

[TrudyRN]

To Rach_nc, My daughter is going through this type of thing now at school. I showed her the Op's posting and she said "Yeah, that could be up where I am." In most respects, this is a great facility that she likes a lot. Some people puzzle her w/ how they talk about minorities, people w/ alternative lifestyles, and even how they think women should act. I was pretty naive in not knowing that there are still people in the world of healthcare that still think like this. Even though my hospital is in a small town, people are knowledgeable and sensitive about different groups of people. This doesn't mean they don't have their "opinions". It does mean they can behave in a professional manner. Having been educated in an urban area, I never went through this type of thing in my education or luckily in any of my work environments. Believe me, even in an urban area, there are lots of "opinions" too. It is very interesting to see different people's opinions about this topic. I agree w/ the person who said that "cultural sensitivity" education is usually silly. I know I used to think, heck it's common sense. Now I realize that is not the case for everyone.

There are lots of nurses, quite professional, who do not like what we see happening with regard to homosexuality. There is nothing unprofessional about not jumping on the bandwagon or being less than thrilled at what we see in this arena. We still need to be courteous and give good nursing care. If asked, though, by my patient how I feel about his or her homosexuality, I will speak my peace and give a straight and honest answer.

[CHATSDALE]

as for the pt with a swastika this may have been put on when they held much different views than they old today, people change, i have seen

die-hard segregationist [sp] hold a black grandchild with love

tattoes are easier to put on than to take off

i don't have any, always been pain sensitive and never had the intestinal fortitude to have one but i have seen those withfirst wives or girlfriends names tattoed on arm

[PANurseRN1]

Not fit for nursing because she holds a certain view? She simply should have been given a different patient and later, when there was time, educated that the world is a big place, filled with all kinds of people. I hate to think that our profession requires us to agree with any and every viewpoint. We ARE people, after all, with our own hurts, histories, pains. WE are also entitled to some common courtesy, like not being forced to care for someone who just is not someone we can safely care for. The LPN flipped out, the RN OP did, too, and this whole issue has been blown out of proportion. Education is the key.

As for caring for someone who is trying to kill me or my countrymen - well, I would care for my countrymen first. I'd be basically decent to the enemy, so as not to degrade my own humanity, but I would not necessarily go out of my way to go the extra mile for them. The problem presented by the OP is that both she and the LPN flipped out. If the LPN had quietly said she had a problem it would have helped the RN stay calm and deal rationally with the mess and maybe later try to probe the LPN's view and educate/help her try to view things differently. The real trouble is that the patient might not have been Muslim at all. Maybe the LPN just went by name or appearance. Then she assumed that those factors meant that this sick person was a terrorist, which means she needs some help discerning who is a patient in a hospital and who is a terrorist trying to harm her or her country.

Try to keep up here:

1. The nurse was late. The OP would have accommodated her bigoted views if she had been on time, but due to her tardiness, accommodating her was no longer an option.

2. The nurse refused to be redirected to a private area to discuss the matter. The OP did the best she could under the circumstances. According to what I read, she did not "flip out." The LPN was the one who was out of control.

3. The pt. was not an enemy combatant. He was a patient. His religion was irrelevant. So are you saying you would give lesser care to your Muslim pts? That's discrimination. Even military personnel follow a better standard of care than that.

4. The pt. was indeed Muslim. The nurse accepted being assigned to him until she noticed his being Muslim on his dietary form. She then refused to care for him. That is pt. abandonment, and I can't think of a single SNA that would defend her behavior.

5. People who hate based on someone's race/religion are not undereducated--they are prejudiced. Changing those behaviors is much more complicated than simply sending them to some classes for cultural sensitivity. Until that nurse learns how to provide care for all people, regardless of race/religion, she needs to be out of nursing. We do not need racists/bigots in this profession.