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.

I work in a doctor surgery, and we never say the Q word, or if someone does, you chastise them. It’s nothing serious, just a unwritten assumption that if someone comments how quiet the day it is, the situation will instantly change. No one actually believes that saying the Q word actually affects the situation.

Superstitious rubbish-I’m a HCP and have heard this thing but I assume no one actually believes that-if they did, I’d think them insane. I do get irritated by the oooh, you mustn’t say that thing though-it’s such a cliche.

I trained and worked as a nurse over 20 years ago and never came across this!! Although half of my mentors were horrid at times!!

Why should the world at large tolerate people getting angry because others don’t share their (totally irrational) superstitions? Why should people have to police their language so as not to trigger their superstitions?

It’s just silly.

No they can't logically but if their experience is you say the word and it ends up being really busy why would they esmt you yo go round shouting Quiet like Blackadder shouted Scottish play. We've always saluted magpies, I'm not superstitious in the slightest it's just a habit, like making a wish when we stir the Christmas cake mixture.

Wonder if they'll reciprocate when arranging appointments.

It’s bizarre and as a non-superstitious person it feels really silly to me. People get funny about it where I work too, especially when on-call.

I wouldn’t deliberately say it to see what the reaction was as I know lots of staff would get stroppy about it. But I’d be annoyed if I just said it off hand and got a roasting - that’s a massive overreaction!

Not only in HC settings. We have it in the school office BUT it is very jovial.

A school office isn’t as pressured as an HC setting though, maybe that’s it ………..

I think anyone who snaps a colleague’s head off for saying anything is totally rude and needs calling out on it.

Nastiness dressed up as as a ‘get out of jail’ superstition should not be tolerated.

I think it's a harmless superstition and you seem quite odd to want to wind people up about it.

Their reaction is quite over the top - I've only ever come across it in quite a jokey way - but hospital settings are high stakes compared to most other workplaces.

Simply because it always does. Always. 25 years nursing and it’s happened every single time some stupid fucker said it (which thankfully was reasonably rare, as most people know the curse).

Their understanding of that experience is based on pure confirmation bias though.

TBH I’m quite embarrassed for people who are smart enough to get nursing and medical degrees believing in woo crap like saying a word can change the course of other people’s lives. Ridiculous. These people need to grow up. Saying the word ‘quiet’ does nothing more than saying the word quiet. It cannot set off a series of events that wouldn’t have otherwise happened and I expect people above the age of 6 to understand this.

sounds ridiculously superstitious. Words aren't magical

Tbh, it probably disproportionately affects neurodiverse people who may well straightforwardly comment that it is quiet this morning because it is. Having people jump down your throat for ‘invoking the curse’ is a problem and I’m not sure insisting that they add tip toeing around superstitions to the enormous list of stuff to mask at work is helpful.

Either assimilate or accept you will be roundly accused of being a dick.

This is the logic that drives social exclusion of all kinds of people. It’s not something the nhs should be accepting.

Absolutely idiotic of them. Some of the behaviour I hear about from HCPs, particularly nurses, is beyond bizarre.

It’s not just HCPs, it’s everywhere I’ve ever worked.

Anyway I have a theory that in high stress environments where you don’t have much control (even over life and death in hospitals), sometimes people need to feel they have some control over something. Doesn’t have to be true, or logical, means nothing about their intelligence. It maybe just gives them something to hold on to. And I think that’s okay.

I'm a teacher and it's a curse on the whole day to say it!

But surely you understand that none of these events happened because someone uttered the word "quiet". They happened because that's what goes on at hospitals.

Those who swear blind that the quiet curse is actually a thing - is it only ever busy once someone says ‘quiet’ or can you magically make it a quiet shift by not saying quiet? And if it IS busy even when someone says ‘quiet’, why do you think that happened?

You sound like the sort of person who makes everything about themselves, to be honest.

As much as the q word does lol

I dont understand why intelligent people, as you say, believe either

Conformation bias?

Of course it's illogical and baseless - the very definition of a superstition!

Not very cool to piss people off in the face of superstition just to show off though.

I work in a GP surgery and we either whisper the q word. I like to say that it's a bit civilized instead.