Cleveland Clinic RN Fired After Publication of Memoirs

[Heddi]

This is disturbing to me, both as an RN and someone who keeps an online blog and often "writes" about my experiences (good, bad, and mundane) as an RN and a human being.

http://nursezone.com/job/MedicalNewsAlerts.asp?articleID=17519

-snip-

That portrayal includes some criticism of what Zurub calls the clinic’s physician orientation. She talks about surgeons swearing and saying derogatory comments to her and other members of the open-heart team.

Eileen Sheil, executive director of public & media relations at Cleveland Clinic & Health Systems issued a written statement, saying, “We can’t comment on specific personnel matters. A critical-care patient environment demands teamwork, trust, and strict adherence to patient confidentiality. Breaches of patient (and co-worker) trust are not appropriate. This goes beyond the release of specific names.”

Zurub said she did not breach any patient’s confidentiality and has always embraced teamwork, learning its value as a child in a family with nine children.

“I did not learn at the clinic; I brought the value to my practice in nursing, within the clinic,” Zurub said.

-snip-
Cleveland Clinic’s stand has generated publicity about the book on nursing blogs and traditional media outlets, consequently, increasing demand. Zurub has ordered a second printing. She also has heard from nurses across the country, with stories of similar experiences in their hospitals, and praising her courage to speak up.

“Hopefully, the attention to my book will provoke discussion and change,” Zurub said.

Zurib plans to write more, possibly a book about the Cleveland Clinic.
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If she did not disclose names, then I don't see why she should have been fired. Rather than seeing the negative, Cleveland Clinic should have seen this as an opportunity to look into her experiences. I would be surprised if she were the only nurse or medical professional to experience these things, and I would be even more surprised if some level of management were unaware of them.

Cleveland Clinic could have taken a real step forward for the plight of Nurse v. Doctor, which is very real and sadly very much downplayed by management and some MD's.

Thankfully the far far majority of MD's I work with are professional and personable and do not see themselves as better or higher on the food chain than RN's. They see us as an integral part of the health care team and understand that we play an invaluable role in patient care and wellbeing. It has been more than once when a MD has "deferred" to my knowledge because they understand they see the patient for maybe 20 minutes a day, at most, while I spend 12+ hours with them at a time. I have personally never had MD's speak to me in an improper or unprofessional manner, however, a few of my co-workers have. I know the MD that is guilty and I stand behind my fellow nurses.

Management, especially nursing managers, feel they have to cowtow to the MD's and more often than not do not stand up for nurses when they have been advised of poor communication skills--to put it lightly. Being called a stupid fat cow by an MD because you had the AUDACITY to call him (when he was on call) at 3am because a patient was bleeding from a fresh surgical incision is absolutely uncalled for, yet the MD was not even given a talking to. Rather, the nurse was advised to "understand" that the Dr is under much pressure and probably hasn't had alot of sleep lately. Yeah, like nurses aren't overworked, underpaid, and going on lack of sleep, either. However if we were to call a patient, family member, other staff, or MD a "fat stupid cow", we'd be fired on the spot and most likely have our licenses temporarily suspended.

[Warpy]

1. Nursing bulletin boards are full of this sort of thing

The abuse is not uncommon and is very stressful for a nurse who is already being overworked to the point of exhaustion. Add to that a management structure that sees nurses as a drain on facility finances and it's a recipe for systemic abuse of nurses.

If there are no names or defining characteristics (like physical descriptions, general addresses or the like, then she has nothing to worry about if one of the thin skinned bullies decides to sue.

Her malpractice insurance will defend her and the bully will be out costs.

As for physicians on call who got abusive over the phone, I wrote them up. It was the only way to bring that behavior to the attention of both hospital management and his partners in the practice. Having to deal with written complaints changed the behavior for the better eventually. It helped me to work of my own anger in a constructive manner, too.