Nursing Discrimination Rampant in Residential Care Facilities: Study
By Kimberly Marselas
According to a survey of nearly 1,000 registered nurses, nurse practitioners, and licensed vocational nurses nationwide, conducted by NORC for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), 79% of respondents had experienced racism from patients, and 59% reported similar behavior among colleagues. Those figures were 74% and 54%, respectively, among respondents working in private practices, doctor’s offices, and outpatient clinics. Of respondents working in nursing homes, 88% said they had witnessed or experienced workplace racism by patients. Of the 40% of nurses across all settings who observed or experienced discrimination from their supervisors, just 23% formally reported or documented the incidents, and only 16% discussed their experiences with discrimination or racism with a human resources leader. Fifty-seven percent of respondents said they discussed the incidents with fellow nurses. Beth Toner, RN, RWJF’s director of program communications, said, “If we are to truly provide just and equitable care to our patients, we as nurses must hold ourselves accountable for our own behavior and work to change the systems that perpetuate racism and other forms of discrimination.” Meanwhile, 85% of respondents said their organizations have prioritized hiring ethnically and racially diverse nurses, and 82% said the nursing workforce hired over the past two years is more diverse.
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