Occupational Hazards

Occupational Hazards

Gradually, most of the things that my preceptor told me ever since I was a nursing student are starting to sink in. Being in one of the most litigious State in the country, it is imperative to be vigilant and watch every nursing intervention and nursing documentation. In lieu of being vigilant, taking care of oneself would also be imperative.

As a nursing student before, I have heard of tales of nurses injuring themselves in the line of duty: needle sticks, pulling up a muscle or tendon, fracturing an arm etc. The US Department of Labor research says: “In 2004, 54 percent of workplace injuries and illnesses among nursing, psychiatric, and home health aides were musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). The U.S. Department of Labor defines a musculoskeletal disorder as an injury or disorder of the muscles, nerves, tendons, joints, cartilage, or spinal discs. These disorders are related to events such as bodily reaction, overexertion, and repetitive motion and do not include injuries caused by slips, trips, falls, motor vehicle accidents, or similar accidents. Also, we have been told before that Workers Compensation seems to be not fully dependable. To make things worse, investigators for workers compensation would deduce the incident to make it seem like the injured nurses fault.

This would bring me to the premise: this country can be called a nation of finger pointers. The system some agencies used is to try point blame to the victim. The mantra seems to be: deny everything and save the collective and corporate asses. This can be a well known policy some companies are trying to glorify and implement.

As a closing point, constant vigilance is vital to workers. There are so many occupational hazards out there, and when injury happens to the worker, the only thing that is secure is the corporate policy some agencies practice: “Deny everything and shift the blame.” Workers can be both the victims and the evildoers.

Work Cited:

U.S. Department of Labor: Bureau of Labor Statistics

The Downside of Premature Application

The Downside of Premature Application

I am recently attending the RN Residency Program at work. One recurring topic that the instructors delve upon is assertiveness. “Assertiveness is the ability to express yourself and your rights without violating the rights of others. It is appropriately direct, open, and honest communication which is self-enhancing and expressive.” I have no objection that such notion is constantly being ingrained to us. In fact, there is a connotation that nurses are passive, and assertiveness is some instances are very much vital.

Arguably, I am opposed to the notion of pseudo-assertiveness. Pseudo assertiveness would fall on the category of situations not requiring assertiveness, but people are doing it anyway so as to have a story in the debriefing session of the RN Residency Program, as applied to its attendees. I would call it as a gray are in being assertive and aggressive.

For the purpose of example and not for the purpose of full disclosure, there was one attendee who would fall into the category of pseudo-assertiveness. An RN orientee made a big deal about a Respiratory Therapist mistaking her for a student, and not as an RN. Then, she delivered a spiel: “I am an RN now, and not my preceptor’s student.” She considered it as an act of assertiveness. Not to burst her bubble, I would say that the mistake was an honest one, and would not warrant a very remarkable and assertive correction.

One of the pitfalls of having a well-appreciated concept (in this case, assertiveness) in the class is to have a premature application. This is an appeal to my fellow attendees of the RN Residency Program. I suppose it would be more appropriate if we would apply the concepts that we learned based on its needs, and not based on the whimper of a suggestion. Arguably, people will eventually detect what is a genuine assertive experience as opposed to whimper crazed-driven pseudo assertiveness.

Now that I have used the word “assertive” and its derivatives more than 4 times in this entry, I hereby pronounced thee as a commonplace word.