Lateral Violence in Nursing
Introduction
Lateral violence in nursing refers to the form of unfriendly behaviors that are directed towards nurses by their colleagues. The topic was chosen due to the fact that most nurses are prone to this form of violence and as it is carried out by colleagues, it may be difficult for eh relevant authorities to establish itsy occurrence. Similarly, most nurses would be reluctant to report such events to avoid being branded a weakling or unfocused hence many of them suffer from the consequence of the lateral violence quietly. Lateral violence in nursing is critical in determining the rate of registered nurses turnover and the possible outcome of patients who are catered for by the affected nurses hence the topic is essential in solving this problem.
Discussion
Lateral violence in nursing
Lateral violence in nursing incorporates verbal and non-verbal nurse-nurse aggressions that are exhibited by health care facility of organization. Similarly, nurses in different work stations may exhibit the same aggressions hence they are not restricted to those working in the same place. Lateral violence is a unique form of bullying or unethical behavior as it is imposed by people working in the same place or profession hence it may be difficult to detect while at the same time it is widespread. Newly recruited registered nurses are among the larger percentage of victims who are affected by lateral violence as they may not be conversant with the working relations of the place (Privitera, 2010).
Seniors nurses have always exerted extreme pressure on the juniors such that they make communication difficult and the newly recruited nurses are denied any chance of asking for clarifications. As time goes by, the gap widens and at some point, the new nurse feels inadequate in her work due to the emotional trauma associated with poor communication with seniors. This leads to feelings of inefficiency as the seniors who were supposed to make the workplace environment hospitable end up ruining such hopes. Thus the junior nurses may opt to leave to avoid any occurrence of clinical errors as there is no one to assist in times of difficulty (Privitera, 2010).
This form of violence is complex as many people fail to recognize it as so due to lack of physical evidence of violence. However, the fact that there is the oppressor and victim leads to the conclusion that power is used unethically to cause pain in others. The other complexity involved in the topic is that nurses who are in management lack the skills and knowledge to handle the problem appropriately thus aggravating the violence. This is attributed to the fact that at most times, it is difficult to identify the culprits and after identification, a nurse leader has to determine the most appropriate approach to be used in solving the problem (Leiper, 2005).
Consequently, lateral violence is portrayed in a series of ways such as backbiting, intimidation, scapegoating and silent treatment. Therefore, it may be difficult to link any of these to habitual violence or changes in moods of the violator such that the nurse leaders have to engage in constant observations for quite some time to determine the basis of the problem (Heather, 2006).
Relevance of the issue to nursing
Lateral violence is a critical issue in nursing as it interferes with normal communication among the nurses which is disastrous for the entire workforce and patient well-being. Similarly, this notion reduces the role of nurses among the health care professionals as care givers especially to the newly licensed nurses who may be presented by a negative image of their childhood dream career. The other significance of the issue is maintenance of nursing teams in the professions which encourage the nurses to learn from each other hence increasing their pool of knowledge. This is because nursing as a field involves the professionals to keep on learning as the field has many challenges hence issues such as cold treatment and humiliation may disrupt such programs (Privitera, 2010).
Therefore, lateral violence has a negative impact on the overall nursing profession as it interferes with the enthusiasm portrayed by new nurses, as well as, those who are seasoned. The realization that they are not welcome and efficient in the field demoralizes them hence maximum productivity and performance is inhibited.
Lateral violence in nursing has been present in the field for as long as the profession has existed hence making it a promininent problem in the field. Constantly, the problem is of great concern especially in recent times due to increased emphasis of on-the-job training as nurses are not taught everything in graduate school hence they are expected to broaden their learning on the job. This calls for frequent clarifications and question-answer sessions with their colleagues such that they have to incorporate dialogue frequently in their daily activities. Therefore, failure to eradicate this problem makes the phrase” nurses eat their young ones” quite true as nurses will not be in a position to learn anything new from their colleagues (Privitera, 2010).
Evolution of the issue
Lateral violence in nursing has been present in the field for quite a long period of time and it is often linked to the fact that most of the participants of the field are women who are not professionally molded to work in teams. Hence most of them fail to appreciate the skills, as well as, the expertise demonstrated by their colleagues and as a way of venting their built up envy, they direct all their frustrations to the object of envy. This is leads to placing the first incident of lateral violence being experienced in the early days of nursing as in the pats the profession was solely made up of women (Privitera, 2010).
Research has shown that women are the most affected group of the entire population as their self-esteem is usually low hence they lack self-confidence and anyone who strives to oversee the prospectus is given satirical names. Consequently, women nurses who do well in their work are not given as much recognition by their counterparts in gender hence implicating lateral violence (Leiper, 2005).
Related research topics that have been conducted in the field include Heather World’s, “the violence that end careers”. According to this research, lateral violence is a widespread problem which can lead to termination of the nursing career especially for the newly recruited nurses who get humiliated in the early stages of their career. Communication is seen as the best solution to the problem as most of the violators are often not knowledgably of their problem until they are informed about its impact on others (Heather, 2006).
These results are significance to the nursing practice as they provide an insight into was through which nurse can have a stronger hold on their colleague’s behaviors. Similarly, it provides reassurance that the problem can be solved when appropriate measures are undertaken. Additional research efforts on the topic include seeking ways of carrying out comprehensive orientation and mentorship programs for new nurses so that their careers are not dampened. Consequently, more research should be conducted to establish the ways through which men cope or handle lateral violence in the nursing field as very few men are subjected to this form of violence (Privitera, 2010).
Future directions for lateral violence in nursing
The problem may be resolved in the near future especially with the introduction of training programs for nurses on mediation techniques. In these programs nurses will be trained on various concepts of conflict management which are aimed at identifying the problems early, as well as, determining the best approach to the issues. Such interventions are essential in ensuring that even the violators of the problem are able to understand the implications of their behavior hence they avoid occurrence of similar scenarios. This way everyone will be responsible for their own in the end lateral violence will be eradicated (Heather, 2006).
Failure to eradicate the problem will lead to lower nurse retention capacities in different health care institutions such that nurses will be quitting as soon as they are recruited. This is disastrous as younger individuals will be fewer in the profession and a larger population will be made up of seasoned nurses. Consequently, the nursing profession will lose the glamour that is associated with it as its problems are bound to make nursing less appealing for those who are aspiring to join due to high turnover (Leiper, 2005).
However, before the intervention generated by the solution occurs, seasoned nurses have to be educated on the essence of treating their “young ones” as equals. Similarly, the role of teamwork should be emphasized on, as well as, the best practices which increases chances of nurses obtaining skills from their mentor without having to form lasting relationships with them (Heather, 2006).
When all the above recommendations have been made on solving lateral violence, the future of nursing will be made more certain as the hurdles towards attaining the mission and vision, as well as, increasing efficiency of nurses in their duties.
Conclusion
Lateral violence is a common form of violence that is portrayed by workmates amongst themselves such as use of humiliating words towards one or more of their colleagues. In the nursing profession, the senior nurses have been known to exert their misdirected pressures on their colleagues especially the juniors who are supposed to emulate their behaviors. This complex problem has the potential of converting the future of nursing into a very gleam situation due to the high turnover of nurses and more so the newly recruited ones. Research has shown that women are more prone to causing this problem while low self-esteem has been blamed for triggering the violence. However, with proper training programs and awareness of the nurses on the problem, the problem will be resolved and nurses will thus be in a position to achieve maximum appreciation for their endeavors.
References
Heather W. (2006), the violence that end careers. Retrieved on August 3, 2010 from:news.nurse.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=20066122202
Leiper, J. (2005), Nurse against nurse: how to stop horizontal violence. Journal of Advanced Nursing vol. 35 is. 3, pp.44-45
Privitera, R.M. (2010), workplace violence in mental and general health settings. ones & Bartlett Learning. Pp. 136-140
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