Hostile Work Environment
Hostile Work Environment
Holly Finch
April 2, 2013
Grantham University
Transition to Professional Nursing
Professor: JoAnn Workman
Hostile Work Environment There are many challenges in the work environment for a nurse; understaffing, forced overtime, and insufficient qualified managers and experienced staff. All of these problems affect the outcome of patient care and the possible recurrence of admissions. The Nursing Organizations Alliance, developed and presented its Principles and Elements of a Healthful Practice/Work Environment (Nursing Organizations Alliance, 2004) which provided a framework for organizations to improve nurses’ work environments. In 2009 the Center for American Nurses adopted a position statement on restructuring and redesigning nurse’s work environments. Improving the nurses work environment can increase satisfaction with the professional role in addition to improving outcomes and cost of care (Stichler and Ecoff, 2009). Hostile work environments still exist today for many nurses and continued efforts are necessary to change these environments for proper patient care and retention of nurses.
As a new graduate RN I was unaware of these standards as I began my first position in the operating room as a scrub nurse in our local hospital. My experience was very difficult and in the end I resigned my position and began a career as a home health nurse. I was verbally abused my two orthopedic physicians multiple times during various surgeries. I was absolutely unable to learn anything or even try to remember anything as they were not teaching or providing a learning environment. In addition to abusing me verbally they also abused the circulating nurse as well as my preceptor. Looking back on this situation I realized that everyone in the operating room is to blame for this experience I had. The clinical coordinator, my preceptor as well as the director of surgical services failed to assist me. Everyone is so “used” to this behavior
Holly Finch
April 2, 2013
Grantham University
Transition to Professional Nursing
Professor: JoAnn Workman
Hostile Work Environment There are many challenges in the work environment for a nurse; understaffing, forced overtime, and insufficient qualified managers and experienced staff. All of these problems affect the outcome of patient care and the possible recurrence of admissions. The Nursing Organizations Alliance, developed and presented its Principles and Elements of a Healthful Practice/Work Environment (Nursing Organizations Alliance, 2004) which provided a framework for organizations to improve nurses’ work environments. In 2009 the Center for American Nurses adopted a position statement on restructuring and redesigning nurse’s work environments. Improving the nurses work environment can increase satisfaction with the professional role in addition to improving outcomes and cost of care (Stichler and Ecoff, 2009). Hostile work environments still exist today for many nurses and continued efforts are necessary to change these environments for proper patient care and retention of nurses.
As a new graduate RN I was unaware of these standards as I began my first position in the operating room as a scrub nurse in our local hospital. My experience was very difficult and in the end I resigned my position and began a career as a home health nurse. I was verbally abused my two orthopedic physicians multiple times during various surgeries. I was absolutely unable to learn anything or even try to remember anything as they were not teaching or providing a learning environment. In addition to abusing me verbally they also abused the circulating nurse as well as my preceptor. Looking back on this situation I realized that everyone in the operating room is to blame for this experience I had. The clinical coordinator, my preceptor as well as the director of surgical services failed to assist me. Everyone is so “used” to this behavior
References: DNSc, B. C. (2011). Contemporary Nursing. St Louis: Mosby Inc. Michael Roche, R. M. (2010). Violence Toward Nurses, the Work Environment and Patient Outcomes. The Nursing Scholarship, 13-22. Susan Fossum, B. R. (2007). The Hostile Work Environment: Speak Out – Be the Voice . ASPAN.