I started at a psych unit a couple months ago and this is my first job as a nurse.
I don't like the way I hear staff talking to/about the patients.
Examples:
One patient had a history of domestic abuse, and a coworker told me "her boyfriend probably hit her because of her mouth".
Another nurse joked about how fat a patient was and that she was an "***" then this nurse proceeded to be nice to her face.
An 18 year old was put in 4 point restraints and one guy "joked" they would let her *** the bed and they could just change the sheets when she started yelling she had to go to the bathroom. Same guy talked about how "dumb" all the patients are
Worst coworker called a developmentally delayed patient "***" and a "***" in the break room.
One schizophrenic patient, old skinny guy, threatened to beat up a female staff member. The charge nurse, very tall heavyset man, got in this patient's face and started yelling at him and threatening to hurt the patient, then when he was done yelling he turned to me and told me to give him a shot. I felt like this charge nurse just wanted to feel tough so he started threatening him. When a tall heavyset woman was combative, this nurse put in a mouth guard and let me give the shot, like he was afraid to do it or something.
All of these people are my fellow nurses.
I have seen coworkers give the "nursing dose" where they give extra ativan and haldol. Or sometimes they give an injection, then leave the med vials out and tell me to scan and chart it in the computer for them, which terrifies me because I was taught "don't chart it if you didn't give it" in nursing school. Got into a fight with a coworker today about that.
I recently got resigned/got "let go" before my new hire probationary period was up. I basically got bullied to quit. I was made to feel incompetent, there was an obvious "click" in the unit, I was talked about behind my back and in my opinion, never given a chance. It had been over a year since I'd worked as a nurse at the bedside, but I know how to take care of patients. I've heard of lateral violence in healthcare, but never in my life have I experienced it for myself and I've worked in a few different hospitals/units. It's demoralizing, has negatively impacted me in many ways and I'm currently jobless while trying to aimlessly find my confidence that got trampled on the floor. The culture of nursing at some of these facilities out there can be extremely damaging to caregivers, which is sad because ultimately it's the patient's who get the crappiest end of the stick as a result. I'm sorry you're having to work with people who should treat you (and patients) like they would like to be treated. It makes me scared for the future of healthcare.
But I have seen nurse chart “vitals not done, pt sleeping.
Not doing vitals on a sleeping patient is one thing, not giving psychotropic medication because you can't be bothered to wake the patient up, which results in a prolonged stay at the hospital and major miscommunication b/w staff is a different matter entirely.
I started at a psych unit a couple months ago and this is my first job as a nurse.
I don't like the way I hear staff talking to/about the patients.
Examples:
One patient had a history of domestic abuse, and a coworker told me "her boyfriend probably hit her because of her mouth".
Another nurse joked about how fat a patient was and that she was an "***" then this nurse proceeded to be nice to her face.
An 18 year old was put in 4 point restraints and one guy "joked" they would let her *** the bed and they could just change the sheets when she started yelling she had to go to the bathroom. Same guy talked about how "dumb" all the patients are
Worst coworker called a developmentally delayed patient "***" and a "***" in the break room.
One schizophrenic patient, old skinny guy, threatened to beat up a female staff member. The charge nurse, very tall heavyset man, got in this patient's face and started yelling at him and threatening to hurt the patient, then when he was done yelling he turned to me and told me to give him a shot.
Did nursing school tell you to ignore it or confront it? And do you really care what people like this think of you? I know it must difficult and distressing for you, but use your judgment, it is not right and it is best to quickly intervene. I would not hesitate to to say 'excuse me, but don't you think that is a little much' something of that affect and off to administration I will go. You might have a back and forth dialogue but in the end the board will hear you and not them. The patients deserve better.
Specializes in Psych (25 years), Medical (15 years).
On 12/8/2022 at 7:27 PM, londonflo said:
With regards to me Frankly I feel I should contract with him for 'living life in 2022-2023'. Davy Do do you telemedicine visits?
Why, yes, for you londonflo, I would.
In a general response, too often members give advice on what they would do without any previous experience in these matters, like an armchair quarterback.
One member mentioned that they would not start out in psych when they never started out in psych. I started out in psych nursing nearly 40 years ago and worked successfully in several areas of nursing, including administration.
The proof is in the pudding.
Another member said what they would do in this problem and has never worked a day as a licensed nurse.
This same member challenged me on a situation which I had successfully dealt with- patient abuse allegations at a state hospital in Illinois- and had no experience in any of the areas.
Fact is, about a week later, this member started a thread asking other nurses how they could be helpful as a student nurse. However, this member arrogantly gives advice as though they were an expert!
Empirical knowledge in dealing with problems is always better than someone's random opinion.
Specializes in Psych (25 years), Medical (15 years).
On 12/8/2022 at 7:01 PM, Please-kill-me said:
Last question, does anyone have experience in reporting a facility to the DPH for misconduct?
On numerous occasions, my last employer, Wrongway Regional Medical Center, was reported to IDPH on several different occasions with varying results.
It would appear to depend upon the investigator. Some have responded with in depth investigations into reported matters, slapping fines and penalties on Wrongway, researched other areas and found other punishable violations, while others have breezed through and did nothing.
Patient abuse and other violations can be reported to the OIG:
Office of Inspector General | Government Oversight | U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (hhs.gov)
I put in my resignation and listed all the patient maltreatment I have seen. I also left an anonymous complaint to the DPH. To top it off I also left my contact info for the Recipient Rights advocate.
My supervisors asked me to come in and talk. They want me to reconsider, and stay on the unit. While walking into the building, I bumped into my coworker, who told me there had been another incident the day prior. The same charge nurse who threatened the elderly schizophrenic man, actually did assault another patient. Apparently, this patient didn't want to take his meds from a mental health associate (apparently the charge nurse let her do this because she was graduating nursing school??), and I think the charge nurse actually hurt the patient. This patient was also an elderly schizophrenic man (I'm noticing a pattern).
I brought up this new incident today and apparently my boss knows he has a history of doing this. He said he has talked to this nurse before. It then felt like my boss was trying to make excuses for this RN. He said the RN had been in the army, that he was getting burnt out from working there so long, and that apparently he gets very angry when he sees patients threatening female staff members because he has daughters. It alarmed me that my boss knew that this was a reoccurring issue and did not terminate this guy. And I don't think anything going on in this charge nurse's life excuses this behavior. It disgusts me that his actions are being portrayed as some noble deed, sticking up for us women in the office. None of us ladies have asked him to threaten/ assault patients on our behalf. The good news though is that my coworker told me the Recipient Rights Advocate was pissed. I have talked to him before, I hope he can do something.
Anyway, my boss said that he is working on a culture change on the unit, that he has already fired people who were not a positive influence. Now on one hand I feel for my boss, we are extremely short staffed, and this hospital is not in the safest neighborhood, he probably cannot afford to fire some people.
I feel so gross about the whole thing. I want to be there for my patients, but the abuse is not OK. Also, a handful of my coworkers and I are not on good terms because I don't like a lot of the behavior I have seen, how am I supposed to work with staff that are pissed with me? And assuming the DPH does their job, I'm sure most people will guess that I was the one to make a report.
A part of me feels guilty for reporting, because I don't want the place shut down. This place may be terrible, but it is still better than being homeless (a lot of patients are) or someone getting hurt because there was no hospital to go to (quite a few patients have threatened their family with knives). My hope is the DPH will get this unit to run better, make positive changes instead of closing it down.
I put in my resignation and listed all the patient maltreatment I have seen. I also left an anonymous complaint to the DPH. To top it off I also left my contact info for the Recipient Rights advocate.
Good for you. ??
9 hours ago, Please-kill-me said:
He said he has talked to this nurse before. It then felt like my boss was trying to make excuses for this RN. He said the RN had been in the army, that he was getting burnt out from working there so long, and that apparently he gets very angry when he sees patients threatening female staff members because he has daughters. It alarmed me that my boss knew that this was a reoccurring issue and did not terminate this guy. And I don't think anything going on in this charge nurse's life excuses this behavior. It disgusts me that his actions are being portrayed as some noble deed, sticking up for us women in the office. None of us ladies have asked him to threaten/ assault patients on our behalf.
I like how you can see through the sob story here. You are exactly right. This RN sounds troubled, frankly. His MO appears to be exerting power over those who are pretty much helpless. Scary.
9 hours ago, Please-kill-me said:
Anyway, my boss said that he is working on a culture change on the unit, that he has already fired people who were not a positive influence.
I am imagining a situation where maybe some "complainers" were let go for not being a positive enough influence, meanwhile the real bad actors manage to not pose a threat to the terrible management so their job is never in danger. CLASSIC.
9 hours ago, Please-kill-me said:
Now on one hand I feel for my boss, we are extremely short staffed, and this hospital is not in the safest neighborhood, he probably cannot afford to fire some people.
You don't need to feel bad about the dynamics, whatever they are. You also don't need to feel bad for someone who sits there making excuses for the abuse of helpless individuals. People make choices, sometimes they have to actually answer for (or live with) the results of their choices.
9 hours ago, Please-kill-me said:
What the heck is the right thing to do here?
You seem to be making good decisions so far. In this case I'd weight all the information you have available and whatever you decide, do it with confidence.
I put in my resignation and listed all the patient maltreatment I have seen. I also left an anonymous complaint to the DPH. To top it off I also left my contact info for the Recipient Rights advocate.
You did the right thing by advocating for the patients. The reason it got so bad is because the supervisor was making excuses for him. If you didn't say anything you would have always had a sick feeling. Good job.
No, your not too sensitive, your professional and compassionate. I agree you should document everything!
Don’t sign for what you don’t give. I have dealt with nurses telling me to do this and or co-sign a disposal of a narcotic which I did not observe. No way. This caught up with this person and those who co-signed with them.
in closing, I don’t think this is a healthy work environment for anyone and I would start looking for something else.
These situations are abusive and need to be reported. Major sensitivity training is needed there, if it’s not already too late. Best wishes to you.
On 12/8/2022 at 1:31 AM, Been there,done that said:
What attracted you to psych nursing?
It is not a good way to start out, and it will limit you. You are in a toxic environment for YOU and the patients. Move on.
I was wondering about this also. I currently work at a State psych hospital but it definitely would NOT have been my choice for a first nursing job because you don't even get to do much "nursing". Working in a hospital or Assisted living are much better options as a first job to get experience doing assessments, wound care, treatments, etc...
HummingBrd323
12 Posts
I recently got resigned/got "let go" before my new hire probationary period was up. I basically got bullied to quit. I was made to feel incompetent, there was an obvious "click" in the unit, I was talked about behind my back and in my opinion, never given a chance. It had been over a year since I'd worked as a nurse at the bedside, but I know how to take care of patients. I've heard of lateral violence in healthcare, but never in my life have I experienced it for myself and I've worked in a few different hospitals/units. It's demoralizing, has negatively impacted me in many ways and I'm currently jobless while trying to aimlessly find my confidence that got trampled on the floor. The culture of nursing at some of these facilities out there can be extremely damaging to caregivers, which is sad because ultimately it's the patient's who get the crappiest end of the stick as a result. I'm sorry you're having to work with people who should treat you (and patients) like they would like to be treated. It makes me scared for the future of healthcare.