Stood my ground....

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I was orienting on a unit and my trainer ( ugh, sounds as if I am a dog..:p) started to yell at me while we were charting resident information. My first instinct was to turn around and deck him BUT I was smart and calmly told him, "I cannot think clearly while you are yelling at me." He obviously has issues that have nothing to do with me. I left that night fuming because I was trying my damnedest to soak everything in while running around like a chicken on fire.

I do not go back to work until Friday and yet my stomach is in knots and I am dreading going back in. I am a new CNA graduate and work at an SNF. I am in my first month there. This place is full of gossip and back stabbing. I am so not into that mess and keep my nose clean and my mouth shut. I am miserable there but work here is difficult to come by so I think I will hang on a little bit longer.

How do you cope with a toxic work environment?

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My job was the same way. The rudeness was unbelievable. I tried to never take it too personal though. I knew that one day I would get to walk out and do something better and they were just stuck where they were , and probably just wasn't happy with their own lives. It seemed that if I came in there happy, those nurses didn't like it ( it was mostly the nurses, the older ones). But I always maintained my respect for them, and over extended my kindness. I always said good morning pleasantly and was never rude or had an attitude. I made sure I kept my communication with them rather than avoiding them. I know it may seem like a** kissing, but sometimes that's what you have to do. These people can do something to cause you to lose your job if they don't like you and one day they might have to be a reference for you, so stay on their good side. Over time, the nurses had no choice but to be nice to me (the best way they could), cause I was always that way to them. Give it time, your the new chick, you have to earn your respect. Good luck.:heartbeat

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When I come across people like that what I tend to do is look at them with a straight face and say to them "Are you alright? You're yelling at me and there's no need to yell at me I'm right in front of you" sometimes they have no idea that they're yelling at you and then they back off. It's most likely due to the fact that they have other issues going on and then they apologize because they were caught off guard by your comment. They see that the problem lies with them and not you.

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Specializes in Peds OR as RN, Peds ENT as NP.

Yes definitely my workplace is alot like that too. Keep your nose clean, do your job to the best of your ability, and at the end of your shift when you clock out RUN FOR THE HILLS!

Haha you said you were thinking about turning around and decking him. Everybody has moments like this. Friday will be a new day and start out positive like nothing ever happened. Suffer through your orientation a little while longer.... and how long is your orientation? Mine was 3 weeks.

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Did he stop yelling?

You did good. :)

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Specializes in LTC, Med/Surg.

Toxic work environments are common in LTC's. I think it's mostly due to people being unhappy with their jobs.

The LTC where I work is generally okay, but the "shift wars" are a freaking joke. People are more concerned about why night shift didn't do this, or how come evening shift never bothered to take care of the laundry, they must all be lazy, blah blah blah. Just stay away from the gossip, be nice to everyone, and focus on the patient care rather than your incompetent coworkers.

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Did he stop yelling?

You did good. :)

Thanks everyone for your responses :redbeathe

Yeah, he did stop yelling and then told me that I am too sensitive.:uhoh3: At that point I just ignored him and continued to work on my charting.

Work would good if it weren't for the people...

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truthfully, i haven't even gotten out of training yet, so i have no clue about actually working as a cna, but i have worked in some very toxic environments, so i do know a little about that. I'd say just do what you know is the right thing to do. and if people start yelling at you, unless it's causing an immediate problem (like not being able to finish your responsibilities or causing a major disruption) just let them yell and pretend to agree/understand whatever it is that they're yelling about. my mother always tells me (and yes i know that this sounds corny) to "just be the best person you can be" and she couldn't be more right. Don't worry about those jerks. Just do what you need to do and keep looking for something that might suit you a little better. you'll be fine

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