A consultant is nice to you but mean to nurses. How should you approach the situation to protect patient care?

A consultant is nice to you but mean to nurses. How should you approach the situation to protect patient care?

• A. Casual chat with the nurses about how they feel, concerns they have, etc
• B. Want to maintain a professional work environment and good relationship between doctors and nurses to facilitate good patient care, making sure it is not compromised by poor doctor-nurse relationship
• C. Encourage the nurses to seek support and seek advice, have my support in wanting to talk to consultant about their behaviour or MWU about consultant's attitude towards nurses
• D. Could also talk to own senior reg/residents and see if they agree, if they'd be willing to talk to consultant about behaviour towards nurses

Answer: (C)

When patient safety depends on a cohesive, respectful team, mistreatment of nurses by a senior clinician can directly threaten care. The best move is to support the nurses who experience the behavior, encourage them to seek advice, and pursue appropriate channels to address the situation. By backing them and guiding them to raise concerns through formal mechanisms or with a trusted supervisor or relevant wellbeing or workforce unit, you create a path for accountability and meaningful change. This protects patient care by ensuring the issue is taken seriously, documented, and handled by those with the authority to intervene, while also reducing personal confrontation and potential retaliation. Focus on the impact on teamwork and safety, and keep the conversation about how to restore a professional environment that supports safe, high-quality care.

When patient safety depends on a cohesive, respectful team, mistreatment of nurses by a senior clinician can directly threaten care. The best move is to support the nurses who experience the behavior, encourage them to seek advice, and pursue appropriate channels to address the situation. By backing them and guiding them to raise concerns through formal mechanisms or with a trusted supervisor or relevant wellbeing or workforce unit, you create a path for accountability and meaningful change. This protects patient care by ensuring the issue is taken seriously, documented, and handled by those with the authority to intervene, while also reducing personal confrontation and potential retaliation. Focus on the impact on teamwork and safety, and keep the conversation about how to restore a professional environment that supports safe, high-quality care.