Handling Staff-Patient Conflict

You are the supervisor of a rehabilitation unit. Two of your youngest female nursing assistants come to your office today to report that a young male paraplegic patient has been making lewd sexual comments and gestures when they provide basic care. When you question them about their response to the actions of the patient, they maintain that they normally simply look away and try to ignore him, although they are offended by his actions. They are reluctant to confront the patient directly.

Because it is anticipated that this patient may remain on your unit for at least a month, the nursing assistants have asked you to intervene in this conflict by either talking to the patient or by assigning other nurses responsibility for his care.

Assignment: How will you handle this staff-patient conflict? Is avoidance (assigning different staff to care for the patient) an appropriate conflict resolution strategy in this situation? Will you encourage the nursing assistants to confront the patient directly? What coaching or role playing might you use with them if you choose this approach? Will you confront the patient yourself? What might you say?