I have a friend, a colleague actually and I've always known her to be a jolly person. I have seen her laugh and giggle all the way through a tough crunch back when we were in the medical ward and I swear to all that is holy that I have never seen her more pissed than she was today.
It started as a usual day, a happy almost perfect day in the pediatric ward. And while we were performing our role as linen staff (one of the jobs rolled into nursing) someone expected but dreadingly uninvited walked in and disrupted our peaceful day in the ward.
He was... someone important and for most guys in the field, who would be important enough to disrupt our routine? Yeah, you probably guessed it. ;D
He started asking questions in a very rude way and before my friend even begun answering his queries, he had another question in mind. Now, I don't know what in the world is wrong with this guy, but for someone in his stature to actually treat a nurse in that manner is just out of the question. I mean, I don't care how many pro bono jobs he did for people but I sure don't like the way he treats nurses.
Now, going back, it seems that our colleagues in the field seemed to have over-stepped their boundaries in the nurse-doctor relationship (oops! did I just drop that?!). Well yes, going back to the topic at hand, It seems to me that some of our beloved doctors have forgotten that they are working with nurses, not nurses working for them. Yes, and I would like to emphasize on the word with.
You see and I am sure most nurses out there will agree that while doctors are team captains, they still need a team to work with; and that team is comprised with lots of nurses. While MDs are obviously more versed than RNs in terms of know-how, it is the RNs who are directly involved with the patient. I mean, and not referring to my current floor, I honestly do not see most of the APs monitoring vital signs every hour, suctioning oral secretions, or changing diapers, no! They don't do that, they figure out whats wrong with the patient and get people, nurses included to work for the improvement of the patient. Yes yes, I understand, they didn't sign-up to do that but hey, nurses also didn't sign up as secretaries and doormats for these doctors as well. We signed up because we wanted to go abroad! (oops! just kidding!) Nurses may not be the one prescribing treatment plans but hey, its not only the MDs whose necks are on the line, RNs have licenses too, and at least by that, we deserve to be treated as professionals not as trash. (photo from Batman, the Dark Knight)Now, I understand that in advanced countries, the relationship between MDs and RNs did not develop to be this devious. There is a danger presented by the concept of MDs being superiors than RNs and MDs working in a healthy relationship. Author Malcolm Gladwell perfectly illustrates this faulty relationship in his New York Times bestseller book, Outliers: The Story of Success and termed it as "Culture of Honor" where according to his research, the Philippines rank among the top five countries with a strong sense of 'culture of honor'. So what exactly is this culture of honor? To give you the concept in a nutshell, it was exactly what happened to my friend this morning when the not so friendly doctor made his rounds. She (my friend), trying her best not to anger the doctor who she perceived at that time was someone who could have her head served in a platter, talked in a calm and almost submitted manner to the doctor and just took in everything he said, even saying "thank you" when the doctor left. And there you have it, culture of honor. So, how is this relationship detrimental? Well, in a sense, nurses, particularly new ones such as myself are afraid to challenge the orders the doctors are making even if we are sure, something is wrong.
I've been told by one of my supervisors (and God I hope she's not reading this) that I'm growing to be a bit rude by losing the 'mam' and 'sir' titles when I address my colleagues and by calling doctors with their first name. Well, go on and read Outliers and you'll understand the importance of calling people by their first names in effect to working efficiency rather than emphasizing on seniority and title.
Hope you enjoyed my post and God bless,
- Josh
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