Читать книгу Toxic Nursing, 2nd Ed - Cheryl Dellasega - Страница 17

In this situation, it is right to be concerned about the RN’s pattern of aggressive behavior toward the aging and possibly slower LPN. Any time such behavior is tolerated, it is given silent permission to continue. The message goes to all stakeholders that such behavior is OK.

The most effective and direct way to address the incident would be for the concerned nurse to intervene while the hostile behavior is happening. In a clear and firm voice that everyone involved can hear, say, “Stop yelling at her right now. Your behavior is inappropriate!” In this case, the offending RN, LPN, and volunteer all get the same message about the behavior. This type of intervention gets easier, although not necessarily easy, with practice and a supportive organizational culture. Later, take a quick, private moment with the LPN and volunteer to see if they are OK, and convey the message that no one deserves to be treated like that.

A private moment with the offending RN later in the shift would also be necessary. If the concerned nurse is a colleague, she might say, “I’ve been concerned about your yelling at the LPN for a while. It is harmful to all of us. If you continue, I am going to talk with the unit manager. If there is some way that I can be helpful, please let me know. If you have concerns about her performance, maybe you should talk with her or the unit manager. Do you understand what I am talking about?”

If the concerned nurse is a supervisor, a more authoritative tone and approach are warranted. She might say, “Yelling at the LPN is inappropriate. I am aware that I have tolerated your behavior for a while and I was wrong to. I’m sorry if I have given you any ideas that abusive behavior is OK. It is not. Beginning now, I am going to call you on it and document it in your record. Do you know what I am talking about? Is there something that you need from me to behave more respectfully?”

Given the ongoing pattern of behavior witnessed by staff, patients, and volunteers, the nurse manager should be concerned about the organizational culture on the unit. This pattern of behavior includes multiple missed opportunities for the concerned nurse to give constructive feedback to the offending RN, LPN, or nurse manager and the LPN’s unhealthy coping pattern of just walking away (a passive-aggressive action in its own way). In addition, there is the possible question of the LPN having performance issues. All these issues should be addressed.

–Beth Boynton

In this situation, the LPN who had been bullied by the RN is not spunky enough to stand up to the perpetrator. Although the LPN was warned by another nurse who witnessed the bullying, she still did not have the courage to stand up or even discuss the matter with the third person. I believe that by staying indifferent to her perpetrator, the LPN strengthens the RN’s hand, which makes things even more miserable. In this case, the best thing is to inform the superiors and administration about the situation by a petition. That being said, the attitude of the administration is highly important to prevent these hostile behaviors. If the administration is determined enough to solve the LPN’s problem, they will also prevent future bullying episodes.

–Dilek Yildirim