Elsevier

Journal of Professional Nursing

Volume 27, Issue 4, July–August 2011, Pages 237-244
Journal of Professional Nursing

Original article
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer/Questioning Nurses' Experiences in the Workplace

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.profnurs.2011.03.003Get rights and content

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning (LGBTQ) nurses constitute one of the largest subgroups within the profession of nursing, yet there is very little empirical research in the nursing literature and virtually no attention to issues of discrimination and exclusion in the workplace by nursing education or professional nursing organizations. This study reports the findings of an online survey of 261 LGBTQ nurses from a database of an LGBTQ health advocacy organization. The survey contained both quantitative and qualitative items and revealed that many workplaces lacked policies and procedures that would make LGBTQ nurses feel safer and more included and that many coworkers, supervisors, and patients had exhibited discriminatory behavior or verbal harassment, sometimes leading to significant consequences for the LGBTQ worker. LGBTQ nurses expressed a need for a professional organization that would educate the nursing profession and the general population about LGBTQ issues and address their advocacy and health care policy needs. Efforts to correct the current workplace climate for LGBTQ employees would involve (a) changes in workplace policies, (b) education of the health care workforce, and (c) advocacy from nursing professional organizations.

Section snippets

Attitudes of Heterosexual Nurses

the degree to which she is able to view the homosexual person as a human being with a special problem rather than as an unspeakable and frightening “pervert” will not only help her to work with such patients but will also beneficially influence the attitudes of other hospital personnel who come into contact with them (Juzwiak, 1964, p. 118).

The quotation above summarizes the tone of articles prior to the 1970s, reflecting both sexism and homophobia. LGBTQ people were considered psychiatric

Experiences of LGBTQ Nurses

Given the prevalence of negative attitudes among heterosexual nursing colleagues, it is likely that LGBTQ nurses might be concerned about disclosing their sexuality to coworkers (Deevey, 1993). Rose (1993) surveyed 44 lesbian nurses and found that 25% were not out to anyone at work. Half of those who were open about their sexuality at work reported that coming out had been a very difficult process. Many had witnessed discriminatory behaviors by their nurse coworkers, including refusal to care

Method

In 2005–2006, Sharon Deevey, PhD, RN, a board member of GLMA, drafted an online survey for LGBTQ nurses, with the primary purpose of gathering information about how the organization could better serve nurses. The survey included demographic information, workplace information, and several open-ended questions about what made the workplace LGBT friendly or unfriendly, and it was distributed to all nurses in GLMA's membership and newsletter lists. The GLMA staff did not keep information on how

Being Out in the Workplace

Participants were asked how “out” they were to friends, family, coworkers, employers, and patients. The choices for response included “out to all,” “out to most,” “out to a few,” “not out at all,” and “N/A.” Most reported that they were “out to all” people in their personal lives, with a range of 57% out to all of their coworkers to 78% out to all of their friends, but few were out to any of their patients. Information on “outness” is depicted in Figure 1.

The LGBT-Friendly Workplace

When asked if their workplace was LGBT

Discussion

Our findings suggested that although most LGBTQ nurse respondents reported that they worked in a friendly environment, this did not necessarily mean that it was a welcoming or inclusive environment. By “friendly,” many of the respondents appeared to mean that the environment was not overtly hostile. Many LGBTQ nurses reported that the lack of inclusive policies and benefits and the negative attitudes and behaviors among some of their coworkers and patients contributed to an unfriendly

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the Board of Directors and Joel Ginsberg, former executive director of the GLMA, who supported Dr. Deevey's idea to survey nurses and hosted the survey. James Beaudreau of GLMA assisted the current authors in accessing the data.

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