While listening to the report given by the nurse, the first few comments she made threw me for a loop because I was not expecting her to make some comments that she made. She started off by admitting she did not know how to say his name and laughed it off. She then continued to say, “He’s one of those, if you know what I mean”, and that “he’s one of those people”. These statements made me uncomfortable for a few reasons.
The statement she made about not knowing the patients name made me uncomfortable because to start, she is with this patient for 12 hours. By the end of the shift, you should know how to pronounce the patient’s name or at least a nickname they like to go by. It led me to think she did not provide the adequate amount of attention and care for this patient because she could not take the time to learn how to say their name or learn what they like to be called. The other two comments she made were also uncomfortable because it shows that she is stereotyping in some way. It is important to address these statements because it can lead to the nurse providing inadequate care whether she is aware of it or not. It can also make the patient feel uncomfortable and unsafe if the nurse is making comments like that towards the patient or when the patient can hear you.
The nurse in the video did a great job at addressing the situation and handled it well. I think if I was the nurse receiving report and noticed these comments like I did while watching this video, I would be able confront them about it and would be able to make them aware of how their words are coming across. I think I would be uncomfortable in the situation because the nurse may or may not be aware of how it is coming across, but I think I would put my feelings aside and mention it so that they are able to grow and learn from the experience.
As much as we like to think how well our world has gotten with acceptance and stereotypes, I can say that racism and stereotypes are still very much out there and alive. I come from a Jewish background, and I identify as being Jewish. While Jews have been more accepted these days, there is still bias in some situations that I have experienced that leads to uncomfortable situations. One experience I had that I vividly remember is when I was in gym class in 5th grade. We had to pick teams for a game, and I was the last one to be picked because I was Jewish. I tried to brush it off and move on but later that day I was cornered in a bathroom and was made fun of because of my religion. I let the girls who cornered me say whatever they needed to say and then I walked out of the bathroom. Looking back on it, I wish I had stood up for myself and said something, but I was young and much smaller than everyone else, so I was scared. This experience was one that has always stuck with me. I haven’t experienced anything like that since, but I do still hear comments being made occasionally about Jews and it is hard because they are just clumping all of us into this category that I feel is unfair. Overcoming biases is always going to be hard and uncomfortable but by talking to people and educating them, hopefully it continues to dwindle over the years.
