This blog is to offer evidence-based and faith-based strategies to help nurses who have been bullied by peers have enhanced psychological well-being and physical health. This will be accomplished by the dissemination of shared health promotion strategies that Black nurses have used to mitigate the effects of racial bullying.The nursing profession has a history of “Eating Their Young.” Non-nurses may wonder, what is this “Eating Their Young?” It is a form of bully behavior and incivility that nurses communicate to other nurses. One may think of this behavior as what sororities and fraternities experience as hazy. But, it is not. It is more pervasive in the everyday lives of some minority nurses, particularly Black nurses. Black nurses experience a disproportionate amount of communication that has been identified as racial bullying. Emerging research reports White nurses also experience being bullied by their peers from different racial and ethnic groups. This continues to be a problem within the nursing profession and this behavior must stop.

Moving into the 21 st century this behavior continues to exist with adverse effects on the psychological well-being and physical health of minority nurses. The purpose of this blog is to share health promotion strategies used by minority nurses to cope with the bombardment of racial bullying in their role as a nurse. A conceptual model of “minority nurse role conflict” has emerged out of research conducted with Black nurses in their roles as clinicians and academics.Emerging themes include “horizontal abuse”, “securitization”, and “de-legitimization of the professional role.” Black nurses in particular, felt their peers bullied them verbally and through being denied promotional opportunities, thus“horizontal abuse.” Black nurses felt that they were held to a higher standard than their peers, thus “securitization.” Black nurses felt they were not taken seriously in their professional role as RN and their peers marginalized their academic credentials, thus “de-legitimization” of their professional role.Review of the literature continues to identify this behavior in the nursing profession.The profession of nursing is an honorable profession. Attributes of nurses consist of caring behaviors; trustworthiness, compassionate, critical thinkers and advocates for the population they serve. Yet, some nurses can’t demonstrate these behaviors to their peers.Come join the discussion and eliminate bully behavior among nurses.

Rules of engagement: (1) open mind, (2) advocate agent of change (3) listening with the 3 rd ear (your heart), (4) positive attitude and (5) be part of the solution.