The "bully" nurse

Cute_CNA, CNA · Sep 29, 2005

Someone who is constantly and unnecessarily evaluating your work.

Someone who doesn't fail to criticize, but never encourages.

I'll think of more later, perhaps.

Namaste4All · Sep 29, 2005

So far I have only seen one really bad one and she is self riteous, spends time convincing everyone that her beliefs are nobel and they should back her and when they don't she screws them over or makes snide comments, tries to turn others against them. She has many views of what to fight against but no real views on what she believes in. She doesn't stand for anything positive or good in her life, just fighting others. Very negative, bossy, pushy, and errogant. It's very annoying in the work place. Ironically she is someone who is certain that she is always right and that's why she has to push her ways. In reality she is just negative and bossy and needs something to be negative and bossy about.

Hi, I was wondering if people could help me with a project that I was working on for one of my classes. We have heard nurses complaining about being "bullied" but I'm not sure what that means to different nurses. So, in your oppion, what makes a "bully nurse?"

Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN · Sep 29, 2005

Hi, I was wondering if people could help me with a project that I was working on for one of my classes. We have heard nurses complaining about being "bullied" but I'm not sure what that means to different nurses. So, in your oppion, what makes a "bully nurse?"

Someone who is so insecure about themselves and their nursing capabilities that they are overly critical of others, and only see the negative of other nurses.

boredofnursing · Sep 29, 2005

Hi, I was wondering if people could help me with a project that I was working on for one of my classes. We have heard nurses complaining about being "bullied" but I'm not sure what that means to different nurses. So, in your oppion, what makes a "bully nurse?"

I have a saying, "Nurses eat their young" This is what I tell all new nurses. The bully nurse to me is defined as the older nurse, not in age but in experience, who tests your knowledge about your patients by requiring an "anal" and exausting report on each patient. To have yourself ignored as he, she, flips through the chart as you speak, or reviews the assessment for a mundane insignificant detail that has no bearing on the patients present condition. Their endless questions and complaints about what did or didn't get accomplished during your busy understaffed shift. This is an attempt at intimidation and in my opinion is determental to new nurse's job satisfaction. Remember we are a team and it is a 24 hour job. As a new nurse 9 years ago, I was repeatedly drilled until I could take it no more and faught back. But unfortunately some of my class mates did not ,and thus quit the floor. Nurse's don't eat your young, our job is stressful enough without this going on. Be a mentor instead, instruction not destruction. Hint for all new nurses, the "bully" nurse doesn't respond well likewise and they usually will leave you alone if you give it back to them. :rolleyes:

Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN · Sep 29, 2005

I have a saying, "Nurses eat their young" This is what I tell all new nurses

That only adds fuel to the fire (not to mention that phrase is a negative generalization ).

Mister Chris, MSN, NP · Sep 29, 2005

Hi, I was wondering if people could help me with a project that I was working on for one of my classes. We have heard nurses complaining about being "bullied" but I'm not sure what that means to different nurses. So, in your oppion, what makes a "bully nurse?"

All of the above, also the nurse who feels if she can put down a fellow workmate in front of others, then she is pacing herself more superior! Jealousy plays a big part in bullying and so does fear. Can also happen when your superior wants to 'get the better of' you. Have experienced this personally where my direct senior obviously had a 'hate' complex for me when she found that I had more qualifications than she did!

Avoid bullies, or report them, if you can 'turn the other cheek' and carry-on working. Do not let a bully see you cry etc. Then they know they have won.

Report them. In Qld Australia we have a grievance procedure to assist in stamping out bullying.

Avoid them if you can

Happy Nursing. :balloons:

Mister Chris. :specs:

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Sep 29, 2005

Having been a nurse manager (head nurse) I can give you a little perspective on this. A bully nurse will often be loud and very verbal about their views. When something is being discussed or a decision has to be made they will elbow their way into the conversation and try to take it over. They sometimes will have a little gang of buddy nurses or perhaps just one other "friend" who thinks like her, often act like her and take their cues from her. These cliques can include RNs, LPNs, aides, and unit secretaries all conspiring together--a lot of them are equal opporunity bullys. When they are all working at the same time they exert a powerful influence and intimidation over the other nurses. Sometimes they are aware of this power they have and sometimes not so aware. They will take the opportunity to divide up the assignments for the shift and make sure they, and any "friends" they have working, get the better assignment and take their breaks together. They sometimes will seem to act as if the other nurses don't even exist, so a quieter nurse who is fearful and not comfortable confronting or being assertive with one of these people is going to feel bullied or stepped on. People outside their little group want to limit their contact with them because they are likely to get yelled at or ridiculed and who wants to put up with that? They can be ring leaders for trouble and gossip. The more they are allowed to carry on that way without being stopped the more outrageous they can become with their power and will overwhelm the others who do not participate in the same behaviors. Bullys exist by intimidation. They are not much different from the bullies kids run across in grade school except they are adults.

I have to add that if a manager or supervisor doesn't step in and break up this behavior, she is going to lose a lot of good staff nurses. The problem is compounded even further if the manager has gotten sucked into the bully's power trip. Management, I found, involves dealing with behavior problems as well as the usual staffing and patient problems. A bully would be classified as a "difficult" employee and it takes a lot out of me emotionally to just deal with them because they are so arogant and persistant about the authority they think they have.

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Sep 29, 2005

The bully nurse to me is defined as the older nurse, not in age but in experience, who tests your knowledge about your patients by requiring an "anal" and exausting report on each patient. To have yourself ignored as he, she, flips through the chart as you speak, or reviews the assessment for a mundane insignificant detail that has no bearing on the patients present condition. Their endless questions and complaints about what did or didn't get accomplished during your busy understaffed shift. This is an attempt at intimidation and in my opinion is determental to new nurse's job satisfaction.

I have to disagree with the first part of this post. First of all I am an older nurse (30 years) and have many friends who are also older nurses by definition of experience. I don't test and question new grads that I've been precepting. I try to take them in hand and guide them, impart to them some of the wisdom I've learned in the past 30 years to help make their way a little easier. The poster is right about bullies being intimidating. However, they come in all shapes, sizes, genders, ages and years of (in)experience. I speak from the experience of having been a supervisor and nurse manager who saw this kind of behavior and also experienced it over the years. A CNA or a unit secretary can be a bully just as well as an RN. You are correct that bullys can ignore you, ask endless intimidating questions and complain about your performance, but these are only outward manifestations of the true heart of this beast who really has an ulterior motive of seeing herself or himself as being better than everybody else. Bullys are inherently mean, negative people who want to have power over everyone else and will not stop at using these kinds of nasty little behaviors to accomplish this. Bullys can be found in all walks of life, not just nursing.

control · Sep 29, 2005

I have a saying, "Nurses eat their young" This is what I tell all new nurses. The bully nurse to me is defined as the older nurse, not in age but in experience, who tests your knowledge about your patients by requiring an "anal" and exausting report on each patient. To have yourself ignored as he, she, flips through the chart as you speak, or reviews the assessment for a mundane insignificant detail that has no bearing on the patients present condition. Their endless questions and complaints about what did or didn't get accomplished during your busy understaffed shift. This is an attempt at intimidation and in my opinion is determental to new nurse's job satisfaction. Remember we are a team and it is a 24 hour job. As a new nurse 9 years ago, I was repeatedly drilled until I could take it no more and faught back. But unfortunately some of my class mates did not ,and thus quit the floor. Nurse's don't eat your young, our job is stressful enough without this going on. Be a mentor instead, instruction not destruction. Hint for all new nurses, the "bully" nurse doesn't respond well likewise and they usually will leave you alone if you give it back to them.

ITA. Well said.

eta: Nurses tend to be very competitive with one another, I observed. The ones that are trying to marry a doctor fight over the residents and other medical staff (single or otherwise). The ones that are in ICU think they're better than tele, the ones in tele think they're better than med surg, and OR, ER, etc think they're above them all. When there is a new nurse (more competition) some of the really insecure, territorial ones pounce. Of course, this is not the case everywhere, but I've seen this type of behavior very often and bullying often results from it.

Haunted · Sep 29, 2005

I have a saying, "Nurses eat their young" This is what I tell all new nurses. The bully nurse to me is defined as the older nurse, not in age but in experience, who tests your knowledge about your patients by requiring an "anal" and exausting report on each patient. To have yourself ignored as he, she, flips through the chart as you speak, or reviews the assessment for a mundane insignificant detail that has no bearing on the patients present condition. Their endless questions and complaints about what did or didn't get accomplished during your busy understaffed shift. This is an attempt at intimidation and in my opinion is determental to new nurse's job satisfaction. Remember we are a team and it is a 24 hour job. As a new nurse 9 years ago, I was repeatedly drilled until I could take it no more and faught back. But unfortunately some of my class mates did not ,and thus quit the floor. Nurse's don't eat your young, our job is stressful enough without this going on. Be a mentor instead, instruction not destruction. Hint for all new nurses, the "bully" nurse doesn't respond well likewise and they usually will leave you alone if you give it back to them.

OH BABY!!!! I could have written this post. I'm still living it day by day, in fact am going in on my DAY OFF to add some documentation to a chart that could have been done by oncoming staff.

talaxandra · Sep 29, 2005

The bully nurse to me is defined as the older nurse, not in age but in experience, who tests your knowledge about your patients by requiring an "anal" and exausting report on each patient.

I do that - I really hope that new nurses don't see me as a bully I use an informal Q&A at handover (time permitting) to encourage less experienced staff to think about the connections between conditions and treatment, and to encourage an open approach, where all staff feel comfortable acknowledging their knowledge gaps. I know how hard it can be, especially when everything is new, to use the critical thinking skills that are supposed to become second nature

Bullies, as has been posted before, can come in the guise of anyone - it's a mindset, not a rank. They will behave differently depending on what they think they can get away with. In broad terms, their behaviour is aimed at diminishing their target/s - undermining self-confidence, critisising them to superiors and colleagues and even patients or relatives, and selectively drawing attention unfavourably.