Comments on: Lateral Violence and Conflict: What’s the difference? http://nursingnovellas.com/2009/lateral-violence-and-conflict-what%e2%80%99s-the-difference/ The Novel Approach to Nursing Education by Amy Glenn Vega Sun, 04 Dec 2011 23:07:34 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: Amy Glenn Vega http://nursingnovellas.com/2009/lateral-violence-and-conflict-what%e2%80%99s-the-difference/comment-page-1/#comment-17779 Amy Glenn Vega Tue, 22 Feb 2011 13:42:03 +0000 http://nursingnovellas.com/?p=369#comment-17779 Susan, I hear you. I understand that vertical violence is gaining more recognition as a problem that is distinct and separate from lateral violence. It is obviously harder to address abusive behavior when it is top-down versus lateral, and the evidence-based fixes that help minimize lateral violence aren't as easily applied in cases of vertical violence. I am keeping an eye on the literature about vertical violence and would be very interested to hear about any best practices or success stories from organizations that have addressed the issue. Susan, I hear you. I understand that vertical violence is gaining more recognition as a problem that is distinct and separate from lateral violence. It is obviously harder to address abusive behavior when it is top-down versus lateral, and the evidence-based fixes that help minimize lateral violence aren't as easily applied in cases of vertical violence. I am keeping an eye on the literature about vertical violence and would be very interested to hear about any best practices or success stories from organizations that have addressed the issue.

]]> By: Susan http://nursingnovellas.com/2009/lateral-violence-and-conflict-what%e2%80%99s-the-difference/comment-page-1/#comment-17703 Susan Mon, 21 Feb 2011 12:25:13 +0000 http://nursingnovellas.com/?p=369#comment-17703 We are currently dealing with ‘vertical violence” in our workplace. The covert and overt behaviors of our director (the abuser) have been documented by several staff members and taken to HR and upper administration. Their response was to send the abuser to relationship classes which has done nothing to thwart the abuse. Even though our facility has a “zero tolerance” policy in place to comply with the governing bodies, these policies are not being implemented. Needless to say, we feel helpless and unsupported. It is not difficult to understand why this type of problem is so prevalent in the healthcare industry....or why so many nurses leave the profession. We are currently dealing with ‘vertical violence” in our workplace. The covert and overt behaviors of our director (the abuser) have been documented by several staff members and taken to HR and upper administration. Their response was to send the abuser to relationship classes which has done nothing to thwart the abuse. Even though our facility has a “zero tolerance” policy in place to comply with the governing bodies, these policies are not being implemented. Needless to say, we feel helpless and unsupported. It is not difficult to understand why this type of problem is so prevalent in the healthcare industry….or why so many nurses leave the profession.

]]> By: Laurie W http://nursingnovellas.com/2009/lateral-violence-and-conflict-what%e2%80%99s-the-difference/comment-page-1/#comment-443 Laurie W Thu, 17 Dec 2009 18:19:06 +0000 http://nursingnovellas.com/?p=369#comment-443 If no resolution can be made, then continue your fight up the ladder. Just because some of this abuse is dished out from a verticle leader, doesn't always mean there isn't someone more "verticle" than the abuser. I had a verticle attack from a manager. Our company has standard written work procedures to follow. With that said, this manager was having to deal with an exception. She did not inform me prior to my work, then had the nerve to get in my face about how I was getting into the middle of something that I didn't need to be involved with. Her attack was unwarranted. I defended myself in saying that I was following my procedures and she had not made me aware that there was a "special circumstance" in this case. She knew I was right and actually backed off. So I felt pretty sucessful in thwarting what could have been an explosive situation. I realize that all situations are not this easily resolved, but I am saying that standing up for yourself in a non-threatening way can often make a difference. If no resolution can be made, then continue your fight up the ladder. Just because some of this abuse is dished out from a verticle leader, doesn't always mean there isn't someone more "verticle" than the abuser. I had a verticle attack from a manager. Our company has standard written work procedures to follow. With that said, this manager was having to deal with an exception. She did not inform me prior to my work, then had the nerve to get in my face about how I was getting into the middle of something that I didn't need to be involved with. Her attack was unwarranted. I defended myself in saying that I was following my procedures and she had not made me aware that there was a "special circumstance" in this case. She knew I was right and actually backed off. So I felt pretty sucessful in thwarting what could have been an explosive situation. I realize that all situations are not this easily resolved, but I am saying that standing up for yourself in a non-threatening way can often make a difference.

]]> By: Laurie W http://nursingnovellas.com/2009/lateral-violence-and-conflict-what%e2%80%99s-the-difference/comment-page-1/#comment-442 Laurie W Thu, 17 Dec 2009 18:18:45 +0000 http://nursingnovellas.com/?p=369#comment-442 Lateral and verticle violence are not unique to the healthcare field. Most folks sweep it under the carpet and hope it doesn't happen again. The biggest problem that I see is that this passive behavior actually ENABLES your "attacker" to do it again. I am not saying that you should get caught in the drama of the moment, but all issues should be addressed directly to those responsible. Lateral and verticle violence are not unique to the healthcare field. Most folks sweep it under the carpet and hope it doesn't happen again. The biggest problem that I see is that this passive behavior actually ENABLES your "attacker" to do it again. I am not saying that you should get caught in the drama of the moment, but all issues should be addressed directly to those responsible.

]]> By: Amy Glenn Vega http://nursingnovellas.com/2009/lateral-violence-and-conflict-what%e2%80%99s-the-difference/comment-page-1/#comment-437 Amy Glenn Vega Wed, 16 Dec 2009 13:18:06 +0000 http://nursingnovellas.com/?p=369#comment-437 Ange, you've brought up a really interesting point. Violence between caregivers can indeed spill over into care of patients/clients. I know this from personal experience! Years ago when I was a newly certified EMT-I, I was in the back of the ambulance caring for a patient when my colleague yelled and cursed at me for not opening the sharps container before handing it to him. As he was doing the call-in report, the patient looked up at me and told me how sorry she was for the way he was treating me. At that moment I just felt horrible for her. We were supposed to be taking care of her and she was worried about ME! I am sure we looked completely incompetent are caregivers and terrible as a team. No doubt it diminshed her faith in our ability to care for her. Ange, you've brought up a really interesting point. Violence between caregivers can indeed spill over into care of patients/clients. I know this from personal experience! Years ago when I was a newly certified EMT-I, I was in the back of the ambulance caring for a patient when my colleague yelled and cursed at me for not opening the sharps container before handing it to him. As he was doing the call-in report, the patient looked up at me and told me how sorry she was for the way he was treating me. At that moment I just felt horrible for her. We were supposed to be taking care of her and she was worried about ME! I am sure we looked completely incompetent are caregivers and terrible as a team. No doubt it diminshed her faith in our ability to care for her.

]]> By: Ange Anderson http://nursingnovellas.com/2009/lateral-violence-and-conflict-what%e2%80%99s-the-difference/comment-page-1/#comment-399 Ange Anderson Tue, 08 Dec 2009 23:35:11 +0000 http://nursingnovellas.com/?p=369#comment-399 I'm a caregiver in a group home for people with mental disabilities. I have a 20-year-old co-worker who has called other workers "losers" because they choose to spend time with the clients off-hours. Of course, she didn't attend the non-mandated, non-paid training session that nearly every other employee attended. The one who needs it most is the one not there. A problem that I haven't seen mentioned here is that the same mentality that causes lateral violence can bleed out into patient care. Our job is to help the people who live there to become as independent as possible; some will eventually even be able to get an apartment and live on their own. This worker doesn't seem to get this. The co-worker has OCD and then some. Usually she works third shift when it isn't a problem, but at least one day a week she works second shift. One time, in an effort to "control" the clients she ran into a bit of trouble. This particular client has a program where you sign his book if he's good and if he's good all day then he gets a quarter. The client had apparently taken an attitude with her (which was most likely because she had one with him). She asked to see his notebook. He refused. Instead of letting it go and just logging that he had refused, she felt the need to control the situation. So in her infinite wisdom, she went upstairs to his room (invasion of privacy) and took his cell phone. This caused him to chase her around the house swinging at her and ultimately resulted in the coordinator being called. The client barely escaped going to the mental hospital. The co-worker barely escaped being injured over something as stupid as a notebook. Pick your battles. I'm a caregiver in a group home for people with mental disabilities. I have a 20-year-old co-worker who has called other workers "losers" because they choose to spend time with the clients off-hours. Of course, she didn't attend the non-mandated, non-paid training session that nearly every other employee attended. The one who needs it most is the one not there. A problem that I haven't seen mentioned here is that the same mentality that causes lateral violence can bleed out into patient care. Our job is to help the people who live there to become as independent as possible; some will eventually even be able to get an apartment and live on their own. This worker doesn't seem to get this. The co-worker has OCD and then some. Usually she works third shift when it isn't a problem, but at least one day a week she works second shift. One time, in an effort to "control" the clients she ran into a bit of trouble. This particular client has a program where you sign his book if he's good and if he's good all day then he gets a quarter. The client had apparently taken an attitude with her (which was most likely because she had one with him). She asked to see his notebook. He refused. Instead of letting it go and just logging that he had refused, she felt the need to control the situation. So in her infinite wisdom, she went upstairs to his room (invasion of privacy) and took his cell phone. This caused him to chase her around the house swinging at her and ultimately resulted in the coordinator being called. The client barely escaped going to the mental hospital. The co-worker barely escaped being injured over something as stupid as a notebook. Pick your battles.

]]> By: Ange Anderson http://nursingnovellas.com/2009/lateral-violence-and-conflict-what%e2%80%99s-the-difference/comment-page-1/#comment-398 Ange Anderson Tue, 08 Dec 2009 23:11:58 +0000 http://nursingnovellas.com/?p=369#comment-398 I have experienced lateral violence more than once. The most memorable one was when I was working as a CNA at the hospital on 3rd shift. My job was to go around and get everyone's vitals as often as the doctor ordered them (ev. hour, ev. 4 hours, etc.). One nurse in particular had the nastiest bedside manner of any nurse I had ever known. In fact, I'm not even sure why she was a nurse since she didn't seem to like anyone, patient or co-worker, period. Of course, one night I was assigned her patients and one of them was running a slight temperature. Although it wasn't a big deal it was my job to report this to her and then her responsibility to do something about it. I told her and she snapped at me. Why was I bothering her with this? (Um, it's what I'm supposed to do?) Then she stomped down the hall and (presumably) checked on her poor patient. I asked her sometime after that why she had become a nurse. She said the money. Figures. I have experienced lateral violence more than once. The most memorable one was when I was working as a CNA at the hospital on 3rd shift. My job was to go around and get everyone's vitals as often as the doctor ordered them (ev. hour, ev. 4 hours, etc.). One nurse in particular had the nastiest bedside manner of any nurse I had ever known. In fact, I'm not even sure why she was a nurse since she didn't seem to like anyone, patient or co-worker, period. Of course, one night I was assigned her patients and one of them was running a slight temperature. Although it wasn't a big deal it was my job to report this to her and then her responsibility to do something about it. I told her and she snapped at me. Why was I bothering her with this? (Um, it's what I'm supposed to do?) Then she stomped down the hall and (presumably) checked on her poor patient. I asked her sometime after that why she had become a nurse. She said the money. Figures.

]]> By: Amy Glenn Vega http://nursingnovellas.com/2009/lateral-violence-and-conflict-what%e2%80%99s-the-difference/comment-page-1/#comment-351 Amy Glenn Vega Tue, 17 Nov 2009 16:52:19 +0000 http://nursingnovellas.com/?p=369#comment-351 I'm seeing a common theme here! It sounds like a lot of you have dealt with violence from superiors and leaders. That adds a whole extra layer of difficulty in confronting and addressing abusive behaviors. From horizontal violence, we go to an even tougher version - vertical violence! In fact, it appears that there is an effort underway to recognize the term "vertical violence" when referring to violence between nurses with inequal power. Here's a peek at an abstract from an article that appeared in Nursing Outlook very recently (July 2009): <a href="http://www.journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodicals/ymno/article/S0029-6554(08)00239-X/abstract" target="_blank">http://www.journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodical...</a> I'm going to get the full text of this article and read it, and look at other resources out there on vertical violence. Anyone want to join me in studying up on V.V.? Please keep sharing your comments. I appreciate you sharing your experiences in nursing! I'm seeing a common theme here! It sounds like a lot of you have dealt with violence from superiors and leaders. That adds a whole extra layer of difficulty in confronting and addressing abusive behaviors. From horizontal violence, we go to an even tougher version – vertical violence! In fact, it appears that there is an effort underway to recognize the term "vertical violence" when referring to violence between nurses with inequal power. Here's a peek at an abstract from an article that appeared in Nursing Outlook very recently (July 2009): http://www.journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodical…

I'm going to get the full text of this article and read it, and look at other resources out there on vertical violence. Anyone want to join me in studying up on V.V.? Please keep sharing your comments. I appreciate you sharing your experiences in nursing!

]]> By: L. Lee http://nursingnovellas.com/2009/lateral-violence-and-conflict-what%e2%80%99s-the-difference/comment-page-1/#comment-350 L. Lee Tue, 17 Nov 2009 14:22:12 +0000 http://nursingnovellas.com/?p=369#comment-350 We got a new Chief Nursing Officer at the hospital. She came in and did some very dramatic restructuring. A couple of key leaders lost their jobs. People in the department took sides. Some people were brave and maintained their friendships with those who lost their jobs. Some alienated those people because they feared that to remain in contact with them would put their own jobs at risk. Conflict arose between those who were loyal to the dismissed employees and those who chose to alienate them. People who had chosen to alienate their former colleagues suffered from major guilt.It took years for those tensions to be resolved....actually it took until that CNO left and an amazing person replaced her and mended all the broken relationships. We got a new Chief Nursing Officer at the hospital. She came in and did some very dramatic restructuring. A couple of key leaders lost their jobs. People in the department took sides. Some people were brave and maintained their friendships with those who lost their jobs. Some alienated those people because they feared that to remain in contact with them would put their own jobs at risk. Conflict arose between those who were loyal to the dismissed employees and those who chose to alienate them. People who had chosen to alienate their former colleagues suffered from major guilt.It took years for those tensions to be resolved….actually it took until that CNO left and an amazing person replaced her and mended all the broken relationships.

]]> By: Doris http://nursingnovellas.com/2009/lateral-violence-and-conflict-what%e2%80%99s-the-difference/comment-page-1/#comment-346 Doris Mon, 16 Nov 2009 02:07:25 +0000 http://nursingnovellas.com/?p=369#comment-346 A CNA came to the DON with a problem and the DON literally threw her hand in the CNA's face, shouted "I don't have time for this!" and walked away. After the CNA left, the DON mocked her to her co-workers, belittled and gossiped about the CNA's personal life, but never addressed the conflict brought up by the CNA. The CNA was later told by one of the co-workers what conspired after she left. She was so upset, she went to the Adminstrator, yet the issue was never addressed. This was a regular occurance with the DON, who insists she has a "open door policy," yet when I have went to her with problems, I was brushed off, laughed at, or gossiped about. It is terrible when conflict happens within coworkers, but worse when it comes from the administration. I have since resigned my position and found better employment. A CNA came to the DON with a problem and the DON literally threw her hand in the CNA's face, shouted "I don't have time for this!" and walked away. After the CNA left, the DON mocked her to her co-workers, belittled and gossiped about the CNA's personal life, but never addressed the conflict brought up by the CNA. The CNA was later told by one of the co-workers what conspired after she left. She was so upset, she went to the Adminstrator, yet the issue was never addressed. This was a regular occurance with the DON, who insists she has a "open door policy," yet when I have went to her with problems, I was brushed off, laughed at, or gossiped about. It is terrible when conflict happens within coworkers, but worse when it comes from the administration. I have since resigned my position and found better employment.

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