Workplace toxicity can almost arise anywhere. And there is no questioning the difficulty of a career as a nurse.
Most of the time you may have to work long hours, deal with a lot of patients, or the general sadness from losing a patient you had a lot of hope for, or even deal with patient violence.
And if an organization has some interpersonal issues that make it impossible for you to get your job done, then you are definitely in a toxic workplace environment.
You might also be confused if your workplace is actually toxic or if it's just you who is not being able to handle it.
So, what are the signs of a toxic workplace environment?
1. Lack of Teamwork
In a toxic work environment you either sink or swim, as there is no one out there to help you. Coworkers don’t make eye-contact because they fear you might ask for some favor. And the moment there is a new admit or a patient to be cleaned you can see your coworkers scattering.
2. The structure encourages toxic behavior
Nurses are not rewarded for doing the right thing, instead they are punished. Nurses want to take the time to sit and give a patient thorough discharge instructions but it delays the ED admit which is considered to be a time management issue on their part.
Instead, nurses who workaround and give false documentation are considered efficient. And if such unfair and unethical rules pressurize you to cheat, then you are definitely in a t0xic work environment.
3. Employees have responsibilities but little autonomy
Employees who tend to have a lot of responsibility have some autonomy in the professional duties. But when toxic workplaces take that control from you, it is the worst place to be in. This leads to zero job satisfaction and also takes a toll on your mental and physical health.
4. Listening is Passive
In a healthy work environment when two people are communicating, one actively listens to the other one. But in a toxic workplace, the listener simply waits for their turn to talk.
And because of such poor communication, the necessary information to make the right decision and action is absent. And as the communication suffers, the confusion increases which makes it less likely for a good decision to be implemented.
5. To Stay or Leave?
In a toxic work environment like this, it gets difficult to make decisions for yourself, and especially if it’s your first job.
But all I would say is don’t judge all of nursing because of this. As it represents poor standards of a hospital and faulty management, not the nursing profession.
Is your workplace toxic? Let us know in the comment section below.
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