Obvious Is As Oblivious Does

So, sometimes I'm dense.  Other times, I'm pretty freakin' perceptive.  It really depends on how much sleep I've had  I care about the subject matter.  That's why it really shouldn't surprise any one who knows me that there are things I fail to notice until some time passes.  How much time?  I have no clue.  Didn't I just say I really haven't been paying attention?  I've had stuff going on, people.

Here's the part where the daring reader *pauses* gives me the *blank stare* o_o and asks what the he77 I been smokin'! (Newports, for the record...duh.)

In this particular situation, what I failed to notice is that I have been unfriended on the Facebook by some people with whom I work.  I'm pretty sure I know the reason for my unfriending, too.  I'm a "them" now.

In January, I transitioned from the role of a nurse doing direct patient care to the role of patient care coordinator, also known as a charge nurse.  In essence, what that does is puts me on the other side of the "us and them line" in a lot of folks' eyes.  I'm not really management, but I'm not really not management, either.  Yeah, it confuses me too.  What I do is a lot of educating, some problem solving, some helping, some fixing patient/family issues, a lot of meetings for projects, a truck load of stuff I'm still trynna figure out, and (here's the fly in the ointment) supervision.  And, yes, I share the office with my managers (yep, I work for two managers) and the clinical educator.  So, I guess maybe I am a "them" and just haven't fully accepted it yet *Kanye shrug* who knows.

But seriously, back to the FB thing...

Recently, the corporate level management/administration came to the conclusion that people needed some guidance as to what was okay to post or not post on a social networking site.  And let's face it, once something hits the interwebs, for better or worse, it's there.  For better or worse, good, bad, ugly or indifferent... the cyberverse has it on lock.  And here's a fact, we work with flesh and blood human beings who are going through some kinda something or they wouldn't be in the hospital.  Said human beings have feelings and so do their families.  Said feelings are probably being experienced acutely and with raw nerve endings because of the some kinda something to which I alluded previously.  Another fact to face is that these patients and their families have a right, ethically and legally to expect their privacy to be respected.  And yet another fact is that we are allegedly grown-a$$ people who understand that there is something to be said for the concepts of professionalism and respect for ourselves, our peers and our facility.  But I guess I assume that common sense is common... which, alas, it only ain't!

But new policy + new role = Amy gets unfriended.


(Which apparently had such an impact on me that I'm not sure exactly when it happened, so you know I lost sleep over it.) 

And I said all of that in order to say this...

What is it that is so compelling to post that one would feel the need to make sure one of the "thems" doesn't see it?  I mean, really?  I guess that I've never felt a burning desire to put a patient's business out there like that.  What if, even unintentionally, I caused a patient or a patient's family stress, embarassment or pain because I was trynna be the cool kid on Facebook?  What kinda jackass would I have to be to use someone else's misfortune as fodder for my status update?  (Okay, obviously this doesn't apply to ex-'s, hoes, pimps and scallawags... as long as they aren't patients in the hospital that employs you!)


So, if that's the kinda twisted crap that keeps you warm at night, well, that's on you.  And if it makes you feel more secure that we aren't Farmville Neighbors any more, fine.  But for the record, I've got better sh!t to do than police folks' Facebook walls.  Just whatever happens, remember, when you post a status about that "Crazy lady on 8 medical," and her son, the cage fighting redneck, meets you in the parking lot after your shift (coz he saw your status on his cousin's girlfriend's news feed and recognized you as Mama's nurse).... you brought that mess on yourself!