The power of language

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There's a great thread going on in the GenNurs Dicussion about how to refer to those we care for (patient-client-customer, etc.) This reminded me of another language issue that gets under my skin, but I've never heard anyone else raise it.

I don't like the way we refer to "a 39 year old female that presents with blah, blah, blah" or a "56 year old, obese white male with history of...etc., etc.,"

Can we not say... "Miss Smith is a 39 year old lady who has left sided weakness..." or "The gentleman in room 6 is came to us with a drug reaction..."?

Now granted our patient may be a coke addicted, working girl with PID, but we can at least say "The woman on the gurney in the hall..." And when we have a patient who is an alcoholic who lives under a bridge, can't we call him a "man in isolation room 2 with suspected tuberculosis"?

I used to raise dogs. To me a female is a *****. Referring to someone as male and female reduces their essence down to their brand of genitalia... sort of diminishes their humanity somehow.

It just bugs me. Am I being weird about this? Anyone agree or disagree?

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Specializes in Community Health Nurse.

As long as the titles being used do not refer to the patient in a derogatory or unkind way, I see nothing wrong with referring to a female or male patient as such. To me, female, woman, girl, she, her carry the same meaning, and vice-versa for male, man, boy, he, him, his.............:)

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As long as the titles being used do not refer to the patient in a derogatory or unkind way, I see nothing wrong with referring to a female or male patient as such. To me, female, woman, girl, she, her carry the same meaning, and vice-versa for male, man, boy, he, him, his.............:)

Dear Cheerful,

The people that are using the male/female language aren't (in my view) trying to be unkind or disrespectful, rather they are trying to be very clinical. I just think this very clinical reference is cold, (keeps us aloof or distant from the person we're talking about...) and sucks the humanity out of the room, so to speak.

Maybe it's just me. I'm a native Southerner so maybe I was imprinted from birth.

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Specializes in Community Health Nurse.
Dear Cheerful,

The people that are using the male/female language aren't (in my view) trying to be unkind or disrespectful, rather they are trying to be very clinical. I just think this very clinical reference is cold, (keeps us aloof or distant from the person we're talking about...) and sucks the humanity out of the room, so to speak.

Maybe it's just me. I'm a native Southerner so maybe I was imprinted from birth.

I understand how you feel since it is not native to your southern upbringing to refer to individuals in that way. It's okay though. I am a born and raised northerner, and everywhere I've worked, I always heard nurses refer to patients as male or female when giving report, or in documenting a fresh admission to the unit. I do the same thing. I've never thought about it the way you see it though. It's not wrong...just a difference in what language we each may be sensitive to being familiar with. :)

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As long as the titles being used do not refer to the patient in a derogatory or unkind way, I see nothing wrong with referring to a female or male patient as such. To me, female, woman, girl, she, her carry the same meaning, and vice-versa for male, man, boy, he, him, his.............:)

I see nothing wrong either. I'm a female. My husband is a male. My boys are male. My daughter is female. It just seems normal to me.

You are right though - it depends. We have a very nice computer guy who always says "hi girls" when he passes the nurse's station - he says it very respectfully and we don't mind but one of the supervisors wrote him up for it!!! All of us who were being called "girls" wrote back supporting him and saying we don't mind being called "girls". One of the docs chastized me one time for calling myself a girl . . .he said it was derogatory. Most of us said it wasn't.

Guess it just depends.

steph (aka a girl)

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Specializes in Critical Care.

I was hoping to hear a discussion about how doctors are just that - Dr. Smith, etc, while nurses use their first name. To quote someone else on this site: "Only children and pets don't have last names"

We complain about lack of respect. But language matters. And this will only be rectified when we demand to be referred to by our 'peer's as - Nurse Smith.

If your nametag only has your first name on it, go to HR and get it changed! Oh, but it's a safety issue! No, it isn't - The doctors around you, both male and female, freely give out their last names. It is a safety issue from only one standpoint - keeping you down is safe for doctors and administrators.

Now patients are different. I've taken to saying 'Hi, I'm Nurse Delasandro, I'm the RN taking care of you today . . . .but YOU can call me Timothy.' I'm not saying that my shiftmates have to use my last name, but I believe it's time we start demanding that of our 'mulitdisciplinary' peers that expect it of us.

When the feminist movement started, it started with the concept of parity, not actual parity. Sweetie, Babe, Sugar, Honey became off limits unless you actually had an intimate right to those terms. Does a doctor who makes clear that you do not have the informal right to use his/her first name deserve that right from you?

Sorry to hijack the thread, but it was titled 'the power of language'.

btw, there's nothing wrong w/ referring to a female as female and male as male, especially since this is our professional intracommunication which has more to do with conveying accurate info than it does with extending niceties.

~faith,

Timothy.

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I do not want to be called Nurse Smith. I say, "Hi, my name is Stephanie and I'm your nurse today".

With the docs, in front of the patients, we say Dr. So and So and they have offered, if we wish, to call us Nurse So and So. Most of the nurses have refused to that formality. With the docs NOT in front of the patients, we call them by their first names. Their kids are on our kid's baseball team or in our daughter's dance class and they shop in the same grocery store and work out at the same gym, etc. Kinda hard not to say "Hi Tom".

I'd rather not get so politically correct that it comes to things like my co-worker getting written up for calling me "girl" in a way I find NOT disrespectful.

I do not want to use my last name on my name tag - the hospital has no problem either way. But the truth is, this is a small town and everyone knows everyone.

By the way I'm sooo much a feminist that I truly HATE that my daughter plays softball in shorts and volleyball in speedos. Softball players should wear pants and volleyball players should wear shorts that don't crawl up your wazoo . ..

steph

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Specializes in Community Health Nurse.

Call me baby, girl, sweetheart, honey, sugarplum, woman, female, babe...call me anything you feel comfortable calling me.....just do NOT call me a derogatory name that isn't even fit to call your family pet. :rotfl:

I'm NOT sensitive about being called kind names or referred to with kind phrases at all. :)

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Specializes in Telemetry, ICU, Resource Pool, Dialysis.

I hope nobody EVER calls me Nurse Smith. Reminds me of 1965 and I should be wearing a white skirt and cap. It's just wrong. I don't know why, but it is. My first name is fine by me.

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I was hoping to hear a discussion about how doctors are just that - Dr. Smith, etc, while nurses use their first name. To quote someone else on this site: "Only children and pets don't have last names"

We complain about lack of respect. But language matters. And this will only be rectified when we demand to be referred to by our 'peer's as - Nurse Smith.

If your nametag only has your first name on it, go to HR and get it changed! Oh, but it's a safety issue! No, it isn't - The doctors around you, both male and female, freely give out their last names. It is a safety issue from only one standpoint - keeping you down is safe for doctors and administrators.

Now patients are different. I've taken to saying 'Hi, I'm Nurse Delasandro, I'm the RN taking care of you today . . . .but YOU can call me Timothy.' I'm not saying that my shiftmates have to use my last name, but I believe it's time we start demanding that of our 'mulitdisciplinary' peers that expect it of us.

When the feminist movement started, it started with the concept of parity, not actual parity. Sweetie, Babe, Sugar, Honey became off limits unless you actually had an intimate right to those terms. Does a doctor who makes clear that you do not have the informal right to use his/her first name deserve that right from you?

Sorry to hijack the thread, but it was titled 'the power of language'.

btw, there's nothing wrong w/ referring to a female as female and male as male, especially since this is our professional intracommunication which has more to do with conveying accurate info than it does with extending niceties.

~faith,

Timothy.

You must be reading S. Gordon's new book, "Nursing Against the Odds'.

Grannynurse :balloons:

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You must be reading S. Gordon's new book, "Nursing Against the Odds'.

Grannynurse :balloons:

Ah, great insight . . I recognize it now too. :)

steph

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Specializes in Clinical Risk Management.
Maybe it's just me. I'm a native Southerner so maybe I was imprinted from birth

No, I beg to differ. There are many of your fellow Southerners who don't see it the same way. After all, not all women are ladies. I'm quite accustomed to hearing patients referred to as male & female, though I hear it more from docs.

I wonder, would calling the patients a man or woman have the same connotation for you as calling them male or female? Just curious. You've got the part of my brain that's still very much into linguistics revved up. :) I agree, words do have meaning & the nuances of various words can vary from region to region.

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