AIBU to think I don’t singularly have the power to fuck up the ward?

[PeachPRC]

disclaimer: I KNOW it’s ‘unreasonable’ to say the q word as a HCP. My question is whether or not it’s actually literally stupid of me to say that word, ignoring the superstitious element of it.

A relative has taken a place on a nursing course starting soon and it got me thinking about my own nursing degree many years ago.

as a student I made the hideous mistake of saying ‘it’s quiet this afternoon isn’t it?’ and had my head bitten off by multiple registered nurses (for non HCP; mentioning that ‘it’s quiet’ is a mortal sin because that apparently ensures that the ward will suddenly become unmanageably busy). I hadn’t realised until then that mentioning the Q word was an absolute no no and I laughed along and apologised.

this happened maybe 3 times (in different departments in 2 hospitals so no overlap of staff). Honestly, by the 3rd time, I said the Q word on purpose just to see the reaction of everyone else. Each time, I was scolded by the staff because they insisted that me saying that word would ruin the rest of the shift by somehow making it become very busy. I said it once at approx 9am and by afternoon still had a (until then very pleasant) nurse giving me filthy looks across the treatment room. The first time I said it as an ignorant student I was properly told off, almost shouted at, by experienced nurses.

I have nursed for approx 20 years and know now that no one should ever say ‘quiet’ but that’s only because you’ll have your face snapped off by other nurses/ doctors, not because I genuinely think the myth of invoking a bad shift is true. This post isn’t about the jokey ‘haha don’t say that word!’ colleagues, it’s about the staff that TRULY believe that saying a word out loud can ruin a shift. I’d love to hear the reasoning behind that!

To this day, I’m still so surprised that HCP GENUINELY believe that a colleague saying the word ‘quiet’ out loud can wreck the shift and I’d love to know if another HCP can explain why they think that?! I nearly didn’t bother posting this because I assumed I’d get lots of ‘OP don’t you dare ever say that again 😉’ posts, but I’m interested in responses from HCP who truly believe the Q word can destroy a good day. Because as far as I’m aware, that’s a ridiculous thing to think.

The problem is you know people believe in it, they know you know it, and yet you deliberately say ‘quiet’ to get a rise out of them. That’s called trolling.

Of course there's no logical explanation because it's a superstition. Bit of a shit move to say it on purpose for a rise though.

I work in healthcare.

We never ever say the q word!

Really? You'd go out of your way to be annoying?

www.bmj.com/content/367/bmj.l6446

christ - i said it many times on the labour ward 3 years ago. I was the only woman n active labour for about 8 hours and DD was the only baby born on their shift. Everyone was actually really jokey about it and said it was really rare - some it had never happened to before

didn't realise they were all hating me in the nurses office

It’s great to have little in jokes and camaraderie in a team - I get that.

but some of the responses OP is getting from folk who work in healthcare here makes me think that for some, it goes a little beyond “joking” and runs into a kind of frustrated bullying of an individual. A weird kind of apportioning of blame onto someone for events that are of course completely unrelated causally.

And that’s just weird and wrong - it’s the kind of thing where a person who makes a genuine mistake in speech, then becomes a lightning rod for everyone’s frustrations as to what follows. That’s just weird bullying. No thanks.

also to those folk who say “oh but that’s how it is…” yeah you haven’t progressed much from school

Sod’s Law.

Just don't say it, it puts some people on edge in a similar way to walking under a ladder near them. I was dicking around once and told someone I hoped they had a very quiet night and 15 mins later all hell broke loose. Whilst I'm 100% sure it would have happened anyway the 2 things are now linked forever.
The full moon effect is definitely a real phenomenon.

Wow are you always this fun OP? 😂

Its just an old wives tale, in house joke, general camaraderie etc etc, of course it’s not scientifically credited but many little traditions aren’t, you just abide by the rules of the universe so no walking on three grates, always touch wood and never comment that a shift is q*#%t!

@Destiny123 I'm loving the fact that there's a BMJ study for everything, isn't there? 🤣

Having worked in Emergency departments most of my 30 yr career it is a word we tend to avoid, but when used I have never heard anyone be nasty about it - it is always treated as a joke.
@Destiny123 beat me to it - posting the research relating to the Q word- I couldn't quite believe that research was done to determine if it was true!
. Nobody I have worked with ever truly believed that uttering the Q word would open the flood gates.
Having said that you wouldn't go round saying it as it is just not the thing to do.

Having said that you wouldn't go round saying it as it is just not the thing to do.

I hate* *this kind of “we all do this” orthodoxy. The people who buy into this way of thinking , always claim it’s not bullying, but my god try being on the end of it from someone who has clout in an organisation and repeats the same “joke” to single a person out.

Yeah.

Perhaps look up ‘Does the word ‘quiet’ really make things busier?’ by Lamb et al 2017…

publishing.rcseng.ac.uk/doi/full/10.1308/rcsbull.2017.133#_i5

People presumably observe that a shift is quiet because it is. Inevitably, due to the nature of the job, it gets busier than “quiet” pretty soon afterwards. The word quiet clearly has zero power to make it busy.
A jokey response that someone caused it is fine. But it is quite disturbing that scientifically trained professionals should genuinely believe that a word can cause it, let it upset them and affect their relationships with colleagues (and therefore probably affect patient care also)
It absolutely makes me think of horrible histories sketches where doctors from the past tried to treat patients in a modern hospital with superstitious “remedies”.

Areas that treat emergency patients aren’t usually quiet so when they are it usually means the same number of patients as normal will come at once later in the shift and it’ll be chaos. No, it’s not because someone said the q word, but it is because it was quiet earlier.

I work in maternity. We usually have about 10-15 hospital deliveries per day. If day shift have a quiet one and only deliver 4 babies, the law of averages suggests that night shift are in for a manic time. All saying the q word does is remind people of what’s to come so it’s no wonder people don’t like it. Just don’t do it!

Perhaps people only comment on things being quiet when they are unusually quiet

Hence saying it's quiet most often means it will get busier.

Also this is in life and death situations - being busy doesn't just mean having to stay on 10 mins later or missing your teabreak - it can mean patients very seriously ill or dying. ..... and they're your responsibility.

You do realise that when things get busy in hospital it’s because a patient has become much more sick or several patients have arrived in quick succession (very sick or otherwise). So, as a patient, be prepared to take the hit!
(said only half tongue-in-cheek)

I think they are implying that it’s best not to provoke colleagues?

Certain Sailors have superstitions, like don’t whistle, and don’t mention the name of a long eared mammal that sometimes lives with a guinea- pig.
Rabbit.
Best not to antagonise crew or workmates.

It’s irrational, as how can a short word or action ( Whistling) cause the wind to blow, or a ward to fill?
But to keep the peace, best not mention it :)

I really doubt the irate response from your colleagues is due to their absolute belief in the power of the word 'quiet' when said at certain times / places.

I suspect it's much more to do with your demeanour & way of speaking, which on the basis of this thread, sounds really annoying.

Oh come on .. I've been nursing longer than you and have heard the phrase numerous times - which will raise a " oooooooohhhhh she said the q word " however never ever taken as anything other than a joke

No dirty looks
No bad feeling
No unpleasantness at all

I work in a similar field and yes "the q word" is frowned upon.

When a new starter says it I will always be faux aghast, very OTT and obviously joking. I tell them to never say it. They usually laugh and match my tone. I can't remember anybody reacting poorly to this but if they did I would explain about the superstition and reassure them I was joking.

More than anything it creates a bit of banter I'm a high stress environment. For example if we have a bad day somebody might say "this is Claires fault, she said the q word yesterday" and everybody will be faux angry at Claire while she either defends herself or apologises profusely (always joking).

That said I work in a really friendly department with a good sense of camaraderie I have utterly no doubt in less friendly departments people will use it as an excuse to be awful. If I worked in one of those environments I think I would say it deliberately because fuck those people.

Yeah this is making me worry about the intellect of some of the staff to whom I may entrust my life one day. It's a fucking word.

It seems utterly ridiculous that a group professionals make such an illogical connection. But it's also important to get on with people at work, so it seems you have to get into the habit of avoiding talking about how quiet it is when it is. That's not really a big deal, but I am flabbergasted at the stupidity of it!

I think you’ve been really unlucky. 15 years of nursing and I’ve never known anyone get genuinely pissed off if someone says the q word. Mock outrage at most. Always treated as a joke. I still wouldn’t say it though… 😱