The nursing profession might be the most trusted according to surveys and polls, but it is certainly not the most respected by a long shot. The intended purpose of this article is to further explore the rampant disrespect of nurses in American society.
I was at my workplace earlier this month when my supervisor told me about a volatile situation that was unfolding on a different floor between another nurse and a verbally abusive family member. This particular family member was at the bedside for twelve hours straight and refused to leave when gently prompted. She was confrontational, hollering, taking pictures with her cellular phone, and interfering with procedures that needed to be performed on the patient. Nothing seemed to please her.
And guess what? The verbally abusive family member was coddled by management and allowed to stay well beyond the visiting hours that other visitors are expected to follow. I suppose the old saying applies in this situation: "The squeaky wheel gets the grease." Too many members of the public know that they can act like loudmouthed fools, behave disrespectfully toward nursing staff, and basically get away with it.
I clearly recall another instance of blatant disrespect at the same workplace. A group of surly family members were yelling obscenities and threats at the floor nurse and supervisor after being informed that the patient contracted a urinary tract infection: "You haven't seen crazy until you've seen me!" "I will put my foot up your ***!" "You'd better get my mother out of this place before I get you out of the way!" To keep a long story short, the patient was sent to another hospital to receive the same intravenous antibiotics that my workplace had been providing.
These same instances of disrespect would be totally nipped in the bud at other places of business. For instance, the frustrated traveler who attempts to enter the cockpit and give the airline pilot a 'piece of his mind' will be jumped on by the air marshall. If I start acting out irrationally and refuse to leave the local new car dealership once closing time has arrived, the workers will call law enforcement to physically force me off the property. The customer who threatens the safety of the teller at the credit union will be escorted to the parking lot by security guards. If any of you try to walk to the back of the bakery to harass the staff and take pictures of the employees and equipment with your cell phone, you will not be in the bakery for very long.
According to polls, nursing is the most trusted profession. For the 12th year, nurses were voted the most trusted profession in America in Gallup's annual survey that ranks professions based on their honesty and ethical standards (American Nurses Association, 2012). However, trust must not be confused with respect. While nurses are certainly trusted, we are not respected by the public, management, or administration.
Although it is generally not constructive to babble about a problem without offering possible resolutions, I do not pretend to know of any solutions to this complex problem. For starters, it would be nice if we had the backing of management more often. Do you have any real life tales of disrespect from patients, visitors, families, or other members of the public? If the answer if yes, please share. And most importantly, please stay safe!
Man is it good to work at a decent hospital. We are union. The place I worked at before (part of the same system) was in a horrible section of town and had signs up reminding patients and visitors that it is a felony in this state to assult a nurse. Worried me that they were up but I never saw anyone act like a crazy person.
The hospital I work at now (same system) security escorted out a Hospice visitor a while back who was screaming at a nurse. At first they just asked him to leave to cool down. He then threatened the nurse and then he was forced to leave and told not to come back. Then security was posted outside the door of that Hospice patient because of the difficult family. We were to call them if the family came in to visit.
I was used to working at a place where I was told to snivel and kiss the patients' feet. So at my new job, when some crazy person started yelling at me because she had asked someone else to do something, I was surprised when my charge nurse and another fellow nurse marched up to that woman and stuck up for me. They informed her she was not to yell at the staff and treat me that way and if she continued to do so security would be called.
People disrespect nurses for manyreasons. From the early 70's toabout the 90's in my opinionmany nurses were evil and dida lot of nasty and disrespectfulthings to patients. Today's nursesare paying for the bad deeds theolder nurses committed.
OK- Gotta call you on this one.
Can you back this up?
Other than that mean nurse from One Flew Over The Cookoos Nest, what have you got?
Specializes in burn ICU, SICU, ER, Trauma Rapid Response.
hherrn said:
OK- Gotta call you on this one.
Can you back this up?
Other than that mean nurse from One Flew Over The Cookoos Nest, what have you got?
*** In 1996 I was a patient in a VA hospital in California. I started in the ICU transfered to step down after 4 days in ICU. After 2 days on stepdown I want to surgical med-surg for another 3 days. My experience with the nurses was terrable. With only one exception I can say that all the nurses who took care of me where mean and nasty and very unfriendly, at least while they were in my room. It wasn't my family either since none came to see me.
I fully realize they were the exception to the rule, or maybe that hospital was the exception since the physicians weren't any better. I never went back and never would. I do agree with your questioning of the broad brush of past nursing.
*** In 1996 I was a patient in a VA hospital in California. I started in the ICU transfered to step down after 4 days in ICU. After 2 days on stepdown I want to surgical med-surg for another 3 days. My experience with the nurses was terrable. With only one exception I can say that all the nurses who took care of me where mean and nasty and very unfriendly, at least while they were in my room. It wasn't my family either since none came to see me.
I fully realize they were the exception to the rule, or maybe that hospital was the exception since the physicians weren't any better. I never went back and never would. I do agree with your questioning of the broad brush of past nursing.
But was your member beaten by any of the nurses with a spoon?
Sacred Eagle has a history of painting all female nurses as sexist abusers of male patients. I'm excited that he's narrowed it down to a time period instead of it being throughout history.
But was your member beaten by any of the nurses with a spoon?
Sacred Eagle has a history of painting all female nurses as sexist abusers of male patients. I'm excited that he's narrowed it down to a time period instead of it being throughout history.
Wow, I thought you were kidding, but no! I must have been sick that day in nursing school.
Specializes in burn ICU, SICU, ER, Trauma Rapid Response.
wooh said:
But was your member beaten by any of the nurses with a spoon?
Sacred Eagle has a history of painting all female nurses as sexist abusers of male patients. I'm excited that he's narrowed it down to a time period instead of it being throughout history.
**** Uh, with a spoon? No I can say that didn't happen. I haven't read any of S.E.'s other posts so didn't know the back story.
So many things can show up in a persons mind in regard to respect. Let's just say Jo is not a nurse. Jo works at the grocery as a cashier. Is Jo's life threatened because someone forgot to mark the green beans down a nickle? Probably not. But it all depends on the customer's perspective. So Jo's customer thinks that he's been made to over pay at her store on numerous occasions so now that Jo says the can of beans cost 79 cents instead of 74 cents he flips out! So it can be the same of care in a hospital. What I don't get (ER Nurse) is why the people who think we do such a Godawful job keep coming back? Why does the hospital allow people (not usually the patient) to come to the ER and disrupt not only one patient's care but just about everyone's care. Have someone go whacko in the ER we get our dander up! We got each other's back which means that if I'm dealing with the idiot in room 4 then I got 5 other nurses who need to be doing something else in there with me so I don't get killed or maimed. Big hospital downtown has a metal detector and a deputy sitting there when you come in. Little outlying hospital we got none of that. Having a metal detector and a guard make someone respect nurses more? Yes, in a around about way. I'll take any help I can get!
I totally agree! I always wonder what will happen to me if there comes a time that I have to defend myself (physically) against a patient. I work in a very busy, small ER in a high crime area. We are required to maintain a competency in "non violent self-defense", which is the biggest joke ever! If someone is trying to hurt me, you bet your butt that I'm gonna defend myself any way I can.
monkeybug
716 Posts
Sounds like heaven!