RP nurses call for an end to bullying by US doctors, supervisors

NEW YORK - Jocelyn was a trainee nurse in a Queens hospital when a doctor yelled at her for asking a question: the spelling of the patient’s name. "I wanted to be sure I got it right," she recalled, adding that the incident left her very upset and made her contemplate leaving the profession. Grateful for the support of fellow Filipino nurses who rallied around her, Jocelyn is now a supervisor in another New York hospital. However she admits to still witness yelling directed toward young nurses. What she sees as a “rite of passage" is actually bullying at its crudest form. “It’s quite common in the ICU or ER, where the pressure is so high," she said. Bullying is a festering problem in the health care profession, and among its quietly suffering victims are the nurses, according to the Center for American Nurses that called for a “zero tolerance policy to disruptive behavior" in a position paper. The Center described bullying as “an offensive, abusive, intimidating, malicious or insulting behavior, or abuse of power conducted by an individual or group against others, which makes the recipient feel upset, threatened, humiliated, or vulnerable, which undermines their self-confidence and which may cause them to suffer stress." As a behavior, bullying is usually “persistent and systematic," said the Center. “The culture of the health care setting has been historically populated by images of the nurse as a ‘handmaiden’ in a patriarchal environment," said the position paper issued in February. “The balance of power has not been in the nurses’ favor." The report said bullying is especially common among new nurses, resulting in young professionals having a feeling of “hopelessness and dissatisfaction." Verbal abuse does not come from organizational hierarchy such as physicians, nurse managers or supervisors, but also from patients’ families. It also cited a 2004 survey by the Institute for Safe Medication Practices, showing that half the 2,095 respondents confessed to having been a victim of verbal abuse in many instances, including “contacting a physician to clarify medication prescription." This pattern of bullying creates a hostile environment as it affects communication and patient safety, said the Center report. In a society with a projected nursing shortage of 500,000 nurses by the year 2025, bullying and other forms of lateral violence may yet push many nurses to leave their profession. As a matter of fact, the demand for nurses grows by 2 percent to 3 percent annually, according to industry reports. “Bullying and lateral violence have a negative impact on the ability of the nursing profession to retain both new and long-term colleagues," the Center report stated. Many nursing organizations – among them the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, the International Council of Nurses, and the National Student Nurses Association -- have decried intimidation in the work place and called for zero tolerance to abuse. They have expressed concern that despite reports to their supervisors, nothing has been done about workplace intimidation. The Center recommends the following strategies to deal with bullying and lateral violence as manifested in “verbal affront," “sabotage," “infighting," “scapegoating," “backstabbing," or “failure to respect privacy:" • Workplace leaders, managers and supervisors should adopt a model behavior; • Recognize and address bullying through conflict management resolution; • Promote a culture of safety that encourages open and respectful communication among all health care providers and staff; • Provide education and counseling to victims. The Philippines is one of the leading suppliers of nurses to the US. Actual number is not immediately available, but industry estimates place Filipino nurses as comprising 75% of foreign-trained nurses in the US. Every American hospital has Filipino nurses in its staff. A huge wave of migration by nursing professionals occurred in the 1960s when nurses easily found employment even on tourist visas, which their sponsors converted into work visas. The migration has not abated. From about a dozen nursing schools in the 60s, there are currently about 300 schools in the Philippines offering Nursing as a course. About 4,000 Filipino doctors in the U.S. are said to be retraining to join the nursing force. - Maricar Hampton, Philippine News