What solutions do you offer for stopping nurse abuse?

FranEMTnurse, CNA, LPN, EMT-I · Jul 29, 2003

How true, Teshiee.

I'm proud to be a nurse too. It is an honorable profession, and one where we can really make a difference in the lives of others.

But unfortunately, co-workers and nurse educators still do eat their young. Not only that, but as you said, they teach you from a La-la land instruction book; not the REAL world.

When I was in nursing school, most of my classmates couldn't wait to get their hands on a juicy tidbit about something I had done. They were all younger than me and definitely very immature.

My nursing instructor who was also an army nurse, was the one who ate a lot of us, but my other one was very nice. Her method of teaching was organized and articulate, and even though she taught us things from the testbook, she would also add, "But that's not the way it is in the real world. I appreciated that. She even complimented me for not giving up when I was being tormented by the bullies. That made it all worthwhile. :rolleyes:

ainz · Jul 30, 2003

When is the last time you heard a group of doctors sitting around engaging in character assassination of another doctor? Or attorney's doing the same? Or CPAs (accountants)? Or psychologists? Or architects? True professionals do not engage in such behavior. They also know what their business is, they can clearly define what they do, they know what it takes to become a professional in their field. They understand the real world and the real pressures that drive business.

The healthcare industry is a business. Healthcare is something that must be purchased. It is not a right in the USA. Businesses must manage their finances, it is what drives everything that is done. Ethics tempers the people that react to the pressures that drive business, ethics itself does not drive it.

Our profession generally lacks understanding of the financial realities of healthcare and how we fit into that, what our role is. Look around the world, economics drives everything. Generally, if you don't have the money to buy something, you do without. People pursue learning how to do something productive so that they can earn a living, so that they can be paid for their knowledge and skill and their contribution to society. Nursing is no different. Too often nurses demand things that make no economic sense. It becomes painfully apparent that nurses lack the financial knowledge and skill when they demand things that are out of line with the financial situation of the company. Even though a company may be making huge profits, that money is earmarked for something already, whether it be investment or just sitting in the bank to display the financial strength of the organization. Wall Street reacts to such, people that invest money in the stock market react to such, it is what drives the American economy. When a group of nurses demand a pay raise or some sort of increase in benefits or more staff, it adds expense to the hospital's operations. Unless you can show a payoff in doing this, the administration will not be interested. If you present yourself as angry, brazen, and uneducated about financial matters, you will not be taken seriously and you will do damage to your credibility and nursing as a whole. The attitude that administrators are evil and greedy and care nothing about people is sure to inflame and shut down communication. Unfortunately they have the power. To bring about change, it must be done incrementally, slowly, deliberately, steadily, relentlessly. The strategies for change must be targeted to bring about long-term strengthening of the position of nursing in the healthcare system. Through economic policy changes and changes in the law that recognize nurses' knowledge and skill, we can advance ourselves and gain the recognition and respect that will STOP NURSE ABUSE.

gojack · Aug 2, 2003

Bullying in the work place for nurses? Why of course, management likes it like that. Management is ultimately the source of your co-workers trying to bully you, and others, too. Do nurses think that all those divisions in nursing itself just came about by coincidence?

We have sitters, CNAs, LPNs, ADN-RNs, Diploma-RNs, BSN-RNs, MSNs, PhD-RNs, nurse managers, Unit Directors, imported nurses, agency, travelors, in-house float pool, students of varying types, instructors, education directors, FT, PT, every once in a blue moon nurse, and just recently at the facility I was at.... an RN who asked us what the difference between Extra strength Tylenol and Regular Strength Tylenol was. I kid you not, and I know that nobody is actually going to believe that this is a true story, but it is. And that's just the divisions in 'nursing', not to even try to tackle the myriad other hospital cubicles management has created in the "health care biz".

The sum total of all this, is that management has found a jillion and one ways to divide us. and bullying and separating us into those that feel superior to others is how they do it. How many RNs seem today to give a hoot about how their CNAs are fairing in their lives, for example. So CNAs and RNs tend to level off against each other, and yes... they resort to bullying tactics. This is just one tiny arena of the problem.

Bullying in the nursing shark tank is a lot like the rampant rape of prisoners in the US prison system. In other words, it's something actively condoned by prison management....oh I'm sorry... I meant medical systems management.

It goes along with deliberatley making health care benefits unaffordable and inaccesible to employees, speed-up, 12-16 hr shifts, no breaks as guaranteed by law, and on and on ad infinitum..... All of this to make the nursing staff feel as they have no value, nor any rights.

Hey, that's where your co-workers bullying attitude comes from. Monkey see, monkey do. But they'll try to pose as the creme of the crop, as they take to minutely interrogating you, knifing you in the back, and then trying to take your job away from you. They're always just being good professionals. Like the administrators want them to be.

So what's the solution? Unity of those below in taking on the top. And by the way, nurses should unify with the patients and their families too. We need to cut out our often hostile attitude towards patients. But that's another topic yet, I guess? Try to help each other out, instead of sucking up to those above. That's the solution in broad terms.

VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN · Aug 2, 2003

Just another perspective, there is nurse abuse going on in nursing schools, too--and not just the "mean" instructors bullying the students. I was SHOCKED to find nurse educators who engage in bullying and backstabbing, trying to destroy other instructors professionally.

gwenith, BSN, RN · Aug 2, 2003

Originally posted by VickyRN
Just another perspective, there is nurse abuse going on in nursing schools, too--and not just the "mean" instructors bullying the students. I was SHOCKED to find nurse educators who engage in bullying and backstabbing, trying to destroy other instructors professionally.

Too right Vicky!! Some of the worst bullying I have ever experienced came when I was an educator. Back to direct patient care and couldn't be happier.

Bottom line is you have to "sell" these ideas to your employer. Even Long Service Leave was sold to the average Australian employer as a was to SAVE money by reducing staff turnover. And it does work. First though you have to find out how much the employer is losing each year in turnover. Usually it is quite a lot in actual money expenses. They do not have to think hard to see that if they awarded even two extra days holiday per year for every year you stay then people get VERY reluctant to leave and lose thier LSL.

Another cost neutral "perk" that can be negotiated with the employer is TOIL. or Time Off In Leiu. This started as a goverment workers perk but has slowly come down to nursing. If you do overtime you can choose to either take the money payment or accrue TOIL. When the unit is quiet or if you need an early break you can take TOIL - you get paid for the hours of TOIL you take because you have already "earned" that money.

Monica RN,BSN · Aug 3, 2003

Well I sure do see alot of good advice in these posts. I believe nurse abuse will not stop until we stop allowing them(management) to abuse us. We have to learn when to say no! and mean it... the more we agree to do without a fuss, the more they will give us to do... Price we pay for being able to do good jobs I suppose. NOT FAIR!

live4today, RN · Aug 3, 2003

I agree Monica! :kiss

If you think it's worth telling your kids to JUST SAY NO...then practice what we preach here and JUST SAY NO!!! Show your kids what you're made of, and that taking crap is NOT the way to get things changed for the better. It's taking that crap and turning it into something positive for the well being of all, not just some. Be a creator, an inventor of ideas, a courageous person instead of cowardly, be forthright, be strong, and most of all be assertive in the process. Jobs come and go, but if we haven't made an impact for the better where we spend the majority of our hours alive (work), then why even bother to set the alarm clock and get up and march our tired buns into a job that robs us of every ounce of joy and happiness in life.

STAND UP FOR WHAT IS RIGHT! :)