Targeted - The impact of bullying and what needs to be done to eliminate it

Reprinted with permission. © 2011 Canadian Nurses Association www.cna-nurses.ca/cna/

During the worst of the bullying, the only thing that kept Valerie* going was a nightly phone call from a supportive nursing colleague and a letter of reference from a doctor she worked with. The letter praised her skill, her knowledge and her clear, concise charting. “I would read that letter over and over, to remind myself of how I’d been,” says Valerie, choking up. “The place I work has stripped every bit of self-worth out of me.”

Valerie, an RN who works in a specialized health field in western Canada, has been bullied by nurses on her team and the manager for almost two years. The experience has left her hurt, scared, insecure and ready to quit. And she’s not alone.

In Canada, 44 per cent of female nurses and 50 per cent of male nurses report being exposed to hostility or conflict from people they work with, according to the 2005 National Survey of the Work and Health of Nurses. The survey was conducted by Statistics Canada in partnership with Health Canada and the Canadian Institute for Health Information.

Twelve per cent of the RNs, licensed practical nurses and registered psychiatric nurses who responded to the survey experienced emotional abuse from co-workers; however, experts in the field say that percentage is likely vastly under-reported. “It’s a problem at every single level of the entire profession,” says Kathleen Bartholomew, a Seattle-based RN and the author of Ending Nurse-to-Nurse Hostility: Why Nurses Eat Their Young and Each Other.

To read the full article, Targeted - The impact of bullying and what needs to be done to eliminate it or click on the link below.

LAURA EGGERTSON IS A FREELANCE JOURNALIST IN OTTAWA, ONTARIO.

*The names of those who have shared personal stories have been changed, at their request, to protect their privacy — and their careers.