I am unsure how to handle something I came across on social media and I'm hoping that someone with more wisdom and experience can help guide me.
Today I saw a post on social media where a fellow nurse posted something cruel, racist and embarrassing to make a point of humiliating someone with an opposing political belief to their own. I know this nurse personally though we work at different facilities and are not on friendly enough terms for me to reach out and express my shock at their conduct.
Part of me feels like I should mind my own business and not interfere with someone else's livelihood. Another part of me feels like in this day and age we cannot pretend to not understand the consequences of making remarks on the internet that alienate, marginalize and harm others. FWIW, this nurse shares their job title, facility and nursing related posts on their social media account, so any passerby who saw the remarks would know who made them. I know COVID and quarantine orders have us all on edge so I am trying to not let my anger overcome my good sense. After seeing the posts, I know that I would never feel comfortable receiving care at this facility at the hands of this nurse, and I am sure I'm not the only one.
Specializes in Community Health, Med/Surg, ICU Stepdown.
There is also a feature on facebook and other social media where you can anonymously report the content to administrators as offensive. facebook will look into it (they have a whole department devoting to investigating potentially offensive content). If they determine it to be inappropriate they may take it down and/or contact the person, even possibly shut down their account. But I don't think that would jeopardize their job... just their ability to post stupid stuff on facebook!
Specializes in Former NP now Internal medicine PGY-3.
Was it really racist, unjust, cruel or are just butthurt? Serious question we have to act since it’s 2020 and people with opposing views just can’t seem to let things go.
nvm found what he said. Just unfollow them LOL, I had a dude who hated white people on my thing I just unfollowed him, had a guy who doesn’t like black people, unfollow. No skin off my back
Are the posts truly cruel and racist or is it the fact that these comments are from a supporter of the president and all supporters of the president are automatically racists?
The fact that this is even a question tells much about where we are at right now.
I have also seen this assumption. The fact that the president is openly supported by many vocal racists does not, defacto make his supporters racists.
To the OP- I am going to take the Devil's Advocate point of view on this question.
I will assume you are capable of critical thought, and understanding context. You believe this person to be a bigot, and to have expressed his or her racism in public on the internet.
- Even if a bigot has the technical skills and knowledge base to do the job, they are not qualified to be a nurse. It seems like everybody agrees that if a nurse hates Jews, for example, no Jewish people should have that person has a caregiver. What about the patient with the name that sounds Jewish, but is actually German? Is that safe?
Plain and simple, there is no place for racism in the field. We wouldn't take a pedophile nurse and just ensure his patients were adults.
-If this person lacks the critical thinking skills to understand the consequences of public racism, they lack the critical skills to be a nurse. I have no doubt there are plenty of racist nurses who keep their racism to themselves, or only share with other bigots. Announcing it online is a special kind of stupid.
Holding a person responsible for their actions does not mean you put their livelihood in jeopardy. It was the actions that put their livelihood in jeopardy.
Reporting this person will allow somebody else to determine whether this meets the standards of the organization. I suspect most on here would agree had this person been burning a cross at a Klan rally. It is not a question whether a line exists- the question is whether your friend crossed that line. Let somebody else decide.
Delete them. To be honest I am the type of person to speak my mind and I know that everyone thinks nurses are supposed to agree with everything and be sweet angels, understanding, and never get angry.....blah blah. I am a person too, but I still would bend over backwards if someone needs my help and I’m good at what I do. Although I would limit myself to what I post on social media in fear of people like you, I would usually just delete my account for a while before I end up offending someone. But I will be honest it is incredibly hard for me to NOT say what I really think because I am a nurse and “not supposed to think that way” but I’ve worked far too hard to lose what I worked for. So really it’s their fault for going off the deep end online, but I would mind my own business and unfollow them. Not everyone will meet your expectations of how nurses should be.
I agree. Some have asked why I would hesitate to receive treatment at aforementioned facility. I said at that facility at the hands of that person. Perhaps it's because I am a "brown" person, but I am sad to think that someone entered a profession to care for other humans when they can have such a blanket disregard for and hatred towards people because of their skin tone or nationality. Can I trust that someone who hates me without knowing me to make decisions that are in my best interest? There are so many other fields one can enter where they don't have power over another's wellbeing. I am not planning to report this person but I also feel like I am doing a disservice to nursing as a whole if I turn a blind eye to it. All it takes for evil to prevail is for good people to remain silent.
I appreciate all of your responses so far. This has been very thought provoking.
We all have a bias on some level, whether we choose to admit it or not. It's learning to work with it and not let it dwell anywhere but in the back of our minds.
Some people are more sensitive to perceived level of bias. Like others have mentioned, let this go, unfriend or unfollow. Someday you may post something that may sound offensive to some, and you wouldn't want that turned on you. Karma will get them, no worries
Was it really racist, unjust, cruel or are just butthurt? Serious question we have to act since it’s 2020 and people with opposing views just can’t seem to let things go.
nvm found what he said. Just unfollow them LOL, I had a dude who hated white people on my thing I just unfollowed him, had a guy who doesn’t like black people, unfollow. No skin off my back
Unrelated, but do you happen to own a farm in Colorado?
I see the point OP, but sometimes people have moments and say stupid things.
I have a huge bias against NeoNazis and might say something nasty about them online, but if one came in I would still care for them in accordance with current standards. I wouldn’t be asking them if they wanted a coffee just to be nice, but the nursing care would be fine. I actually was part of a team that saved a serial child molester, we ran through the protocols, got him transferred out, and then it hit me that we had just saved his life.
I don’t think an expressed hatred rules her out as a competent nurse for that group. BUT if she’s a borderline nurse to begin with, her care will show it.
Remember that old adage "show me who your friends are and I'll tell you who you are"? People, even employers look at who you're connected to. You really don't need to be connected to someone who demonstrates a lack of judgement of that magnitude.
Specializes in NICU, PICU, Transport, L&D, Hospice.
2 minutes ago, HeartlandRN said:
Unfriend stat.
Remember that old adage "show me who your friends are and I'll tell you who you are"? People, even employers look at who you're connected to. You really don't need to be connected to someone who demonstrates a lack of judgement of that magnitude.
I second that.
I paid attention to that when I made hiring decisions. Nursing communities can be very small within larger communities.
I see the point OP, but sometimes people have moments and say stupid things.
I have a huge bias against NeoNazis and might say something nasty about them online, but if one came in I would still care for them in accordance with current standards. I wouldn’t be asking them if they wanted a coffee just to be nice, but the nursing care would be fine. I actually was part of a team that saved a serial child molester, we ran through the protocols, got him transferred out, and then it hit me that we had just saved his life.
I don’t think an expressed hatred rules her out as a competent nurse for that group. BUT if she’s a borderline nurse to begin with, her care will show it.
Any limits on that?
Klan member?
Swastika tattoos taking care of a concentration camp survivor?
And- Hating, or at least being disgusted by Neo-nazis, for their belief system is part of what makes you a decent human being. Hating a person cause they were born with certain genes is makes Neo-nazis garbage, and unfit to be a nurse.
LibraNurse27, BSN, RN
972 Posts
There is also a feature on facebook and other social media where you can anonymously report the content to administrators as offensive. facebook will look into it (they have a whole department devoting to investigating potentially offensive content). If they determine it to be inappropriate they may take it down and/or contact the person, even possibly shut down their account. But I don't think that would jeopardize their job... just their ability to post stupid stuff on facebook!