2.0 Continuing Education Hours

The American Nurses Association (ANA) and other organizations define incivility as “one or more rude, discourteous, or disrespectful actions that may or may not have a negative intent behind them.”  The ANA defines bullying as “repeated, unwanted, harmful actions intended to humiliate, offend, and cause distress in the recipient (ANA, 2019).”  While nursing is a caring profession, we work in environments that can be inherently stressful, which may lead nurses to find themselves involved in emotionally-charged situations.  This occurs even more so in the correctional environment, where healthcare is not the primary mission.  Many correctional nurses have been told that they are merely a “guest” in the facility, with the implication being that they must “fit in”, and the job that they do is secondary to everything else occurring.  Regardless, acts of bullying and incivility are unacceptable, and must be addressed timely and firmly.

This class will describe what constitutes bullying and incivility, and will describe the impact to nurses and the correctional environment in which they work, and the patients for whom we care.  Strategies to address bullying and incivility will also be discussed.