In The Field: Nurse Jen shares how recognizing bias improves patient care
Eastern Pennsylvania based Cardiac ICU Jen Rodriguez, BSN, CCRN explains how acknowledging your biases help recognize opportunities for you to improve upon your patient care.
Q: TRUE or FALSE: “Nurses eat their young.”
Oof. This one I've sadly seen so many times be very, very true. I work in Intensive Care (cardiac ICU to be specific) and so often, that's where a lot of egos can work. I've seen ICU nurses be awful to non-ICU nurses when called to codes and rapid responses, I've heard ICU nurses talk down about other specialties, and I've seen lots of preferential treatment of ICU nurses by many providers. This is actually a huge part of why I started speaking out. From my perspective, I have lots of knowledge to share, and hope that others will share their knowledge with me. We can all learn from each other and are all valuable in our own ways, and I'm trying to reduce the stigma of ICU nurses being bullies one interaction at a time!
Q: What is your specialty and where are you based?
I am a Cardiac ICU nurse in Eastern Pennsylvania!
Jen Rodriguez, BSN, CCRN @JennyRzRN
Q: What does cultural competence mean for healthcare providers?
I think this is a hot button for any professional, but especially relevant when it comes to health care professionals. The systematic disparities when it comes to racial and cultural inequality contribute in a huge way to a person's health. This goes for racial inequality, socioeconomic differences, cultural beliefs, gender and sexuality, among many many others. Being aware of your own biases as a professional is SO important, because you can acknowledge your bias and recognize opportunities for you to improve upon your patient care. Personally, I've always tried to be very liberal and inclusive when it comes to others' differences, because every race, ethnicity, culture, religion, gender, sexuality, and so much more brings its own special attributes to the world. But I think the most important thing for many providers is to recognize their own biases (we all have them!) and then be aware of how they may affect the care they provide, and work diligently to minimize their effects.
Q: What is your experience with nurse unions?
I have never worked in a nurse union.
Q: How did you choose your specialty? What drew you to it?
YES! Please take a moment to recognize just how far you've already come in this profession. From the first application to nursing school to landing that highly coveted prestigious job, there have been so many stepping stones, so many challenges that you've already made it through. Sometimes it can seem like your goals are so far away but you've already come so far, and you deserve to give yourself some credit for how amazing your journey has ALREADY been!