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Bullying: A Major Problem in Nursing

Ashlee Powers

Indiana University South Bend, School of Nursing

NURS-C427: Nursing Leadership and Management

Caitlin Vlaeminck, MSN, RN, FNP-BC

April 11, 2022

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Bullying: A Major Problem in Nursing

Bullying is a problem throughout the world, from school-age children to adults in the work

world. Within the nursing profession, bullying is a major problem. According to the Merriam-Webster

(n.d.) dictionary, the verb bully means “to treat (someone) in a cruel, insulting, threatening, or

aggressive fashion”. Bullying within the workforce is also used to coerce another person into doing

something, such as giving a medication that isn’t needed. Bullying occurs from the nursing student level

to the expert nurse level. Bullying has been tolerated in the workplace for too long and has some

adverse effects not only on the nurses and their work environment, but also on patient safety. Bullying is

something that can happen to anyone and being in the nursing profession increases the chance for of an

occurrence. Increasing awareness of bullying within the nursing profession and ending tolerance will

improve the overall satisfaction of nurses in their careers while increasing patient safety.

Bullying in the Workplace

Bullying has been around for a long time, especially within the nursing profession. Bullying

occurs in many forms: patients bully their nurses, nurses bully each other, and even physicians bully

nurses. O’Connor (2020) interviewed Kate Blackwood, a researcher that focused on studying how

bullying within nursing impacts nurse and patient care. In the research, bullying is embedded in three

main factors that effect affect nurses. These factors are typically embedded within the organization

structure itself, such as “stress, frustration, and conflict” (O’Connor, 2020, p. 23). Nurses work in an

environment that is constantly stressful, leading to frustration and conflict with others. This type of

workplace environment is prone to having bullying. Randle (2003) conducted a study that showed that

nurses who were bullied suffered from lower self-esteem and felt less competent in their role.

Bullying Nursing Students and New Nurses

There is a lot of literature that discusses the impact of bullying among nursing students. Several

researchers have found that nursing students are one of the main groups that are bullied within the
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profession along with new graduate nurses. Buonaguro (2020) explains that many nurses bully students

because they believe that it is a necessary component of the experience in the clinical setting before

becoming an actual nurse. The number of nursing students that have reported an incidence of bullying

within the clinical setting is high.: “It is estimated, during nursing school, 89% of students reported at

least one act of bullying (Clarke et al., 2012)” (Buonaguro, 2020, p. 1). Research also shows that those

that bully others tend to have a higher role within the organization. These roles varied from managers to

nurses with more seniority (Fernandez & Mosteiro, 2021). Bullying student nurses could increase the

chances for of dropping out of the program because of an increase in anxiety and stress stress-related to

the clinical experiences.

Along with students, new nurses are another targeted group for workplace bullying. Anusiewicz,

et al., (2020) interviewed several nurses at a southern United States hospital and discovered that one of

the most reported times of workplace bullying is when a nurse first begins in their career. O’Connor

(2020) discovered in her interview with Kate Blackwood that new graduate nurses are bullied most often

by the most senior nurses because of their lack of confidence. Randle (2003), O’Connor (2020), and

Buonaguro (2020) all mention that new nurses tend to go through a rough period of bullying at the start

of their careers. This is often referred to as a “rite of passage” (Buonaguro, 2020, page number of the

direct quote) and is used to test the new nurse to see if they deserve their title. Lower self-esteem is

seen in nurses that are bullied. Low self-esteem is also seen with self-doubt. Nurses that experienced

harsh criticism, such as for being thorough or about how they practiced nursing (Anusiewicz, et al.,

2020). Bullying new nurses can prevent nurses from providing high high-quality of care because they are

less confident about their abilities to provide adequate care.

Patient Safety

Patient safety is always a top priority within the clinical setting. Nurses that are bullied have

been shown to provide a lower quality of care, increasing the patient’s risk of injury or harm.
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Oftentimes, nurses that experience bullying are more likely to question their ability to perform their

jobs. Their productivity decreases and they cannot an inability to use critical thinking skills when

providing patient care (Green, 2020). Bullying is a distraction that is difficult to overcome because it

changes the way a person thinks and feels about themselves. Distractions cause a decrease in patient

care. In their study, Anusiewicz, et al (2020) found that nurses felt their quality of care decreased the

most, while trying to keep safety a priority.

Nurses that are bullied often have a change in their behavior as well. Randle (2003) found in her

study that those nurses that experienced daily bullying in the clinical setting began to assimilate those

actions into their nursing practice. Patients should be the priority within the clinical setting and treated

with respect. Nurses spent less time caring for their patients because they did not want to interact with

them and provide compassion (Anusiewicz, et al., 2020).

Conclusion

Bullying in nursing has been around for far too long. Nurses have bullied students and new

nurses long enough. Allowing bullying to continue, especially to among these two groups within the

profession, can decrease the desirability of the profession. This could put more of a strain on an already

small nursing community. By aAddressing bullying as it occurs discourages the behavior and will

encourage a more positive work environment. Increasing awareness about bullying could decrease the

occurrence of bullying while increasing workplace satisfaction and

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References

Anusiewicz, C. V., Ivankova, N. V., Swiger, P. A., Gillespie, G. L., Li, P., & Patrician, P. A. (2020). How does

workplace bullying influence nurses’ abilities to provide patient care? A nurse

perspective. Journal of Clinical Nursing (John Wiley & Sons, Inc.), 29(21/22), 4148–4160.

https://doi-org.proxysb.uits.iu.edu/10.1111/jocn.15443

Buonaguro, R. (2020). Bullying in nursing school? How students describe their reactions. Dean’s Notes,

42(2), 1-4.

Fernandez, G. L. & Mosteiro, D.M. (2021). Bullying in nursing students: A integrative literature review.

International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, 30(4), 821-833. https://doi-

org.proxysb.uits.iu.edu/10.1111/inm.12854

Green, C. (2021). The hollow: A theory on workplace bullying in nursing practice. Nursing Forum,

56(2),433-438. https://doi-org.proxysb.uits.iu.edu/10.1111/nuf.12539

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved April 11, 2022, from

https://www.merriam-webster.com/bully

O’Connor, T. (2020). What causes bullying and how can it be reduced? Bullying is a widespread problem

in nursing. What causes it and how can it be reduced? Kai Tiaki Nursing New Zealand, 26(3), 22-

24.

Randle, J. (2003). Bullying in the nursing profession. Journal of Advanced Nursing (Wiley-Blackwell),

43(4), 395-401. https://doi-org.proxysb.uits.iu.edu/10.1046/j.1365-2648.2003.02728.x