Microaggressions about someone’s race, ethnicity, or skills can seem like a small problem, but they’re harmful to nurses’ mental health.
These types of behaviors are slight, verbal, or nonverbal acts of racism that impact marginalized people. While they don’t seem obvious to non-minority nurses, BIPOC nurses feel the ramifications through burnout and decreased work performance.
It’s essential to know that if you’re the victim of a microaggression, it’s not your fault it happened. You may feel hurt instead and invalidated as if your identity wasn’t valued at that moment.
There are ways that you can cope with these attacks when they arise at work, including how to respond when you’re the one feeling insulted and how to take care of yourself after the incident happens.
Microaggressions in Healthcare
Microaggressions have existed in all types of workplaces, including nursing. The term was first identified in the 1970s by Harvard psychiatrist Chester Pierce after seeing the negative impacts these types of actions had on the Black community.
In healthcare, microaggressions can occur between a patient, coworker, or supervisor and include verbal insults and unspoken actions. An example of a microaggression is eye rolling when a nurse mentions feeling like their opinion doesn’t matter on a team.
Microaggressions are impactful because diverse nurses are everywhere in healthcare. In March 2024, around 30% of the nursing population belonged to a minority population, including Black, Asian, and Hispanic communities. Because microaggressions take root from someone who has more societal power than a minority group, minority nurses take the brunt of these actions.
Some symptoms of experiencing a microaggression can include physical and mental issues, such as:
- Chronic stress
- Lower quality of life
- Anxiety and depression
- High blood pressure
- Insomnia
When BIPOC nurses are repeatedly exposed to microaggressions, they’re also more likely to internalize these false messages, which can influence how they see themselves and society.
It’s important to understand the different types of microaggressions before taking action against them, especially if you are unfamiliar.
Microinvalidations: These comments usually use unconscious bias to discredit a minority person’s experiences and lived experiences. They’re also the most common microaggression. An example is when someone denies that race and privilege play a role in our lives or says something like, “I don’t see color.”
Microinsults: This type of microaggression consists of subtle remarks that are rude and demeaning to a person’s identity, such as assuming someone is incapable of their role because of race, gender, or ethnicity.
Microassaults: These are deliberate, offensive, verbal, or nonverbal attacks. This can look like a patient refusing to be treated by a nurse simply because of their race or violent name-calling.
Knowing more about how microaggressions present can prepare you to defend yourself whenever you’re faced with ignorance or allow you to step in when you see someone being mistreated.
So, what can you do if you experience microaggressions at work?
Step Back and Take a Moment for Yourself
If you experience a microaggression at the moment, you may freeze and not know what to say. This is normal since most people facing this behavior will react with shock and confusion.
Take a few deep breaths, and take some time away from the situation if necessary. Acting with anger or hostility isn’t a good idea when those emotions can make you feel worse and escalate the situation even more.
It’s important to practice self-care before and after handling the situation. Journal how the incident made you feel, or confide in a support system you trust so you don’t feel so alone.
When You’re Ready, Take Action
Microaggressions are never okay, and ignoring the behavior may make the other person think they did nothing wrong (when you know that’s not the case).
Say something to call out their behavior, such as, “What you said made me uncomfortable. I’m going to step away from this conversation.” Doing so can let the other person know they said something inappropriate and react accordingly.
It’s also possible that you may not feel comfortable enough to say something at the moment. When that’s the case, you can check in with that person at another time to communicate how you felt about the microaggression and affirm why their behavior is not okay.
If a coworker’s actions are repeated, document each incident by noting the date, time, and place of the mistreatment. Human resources will need this information to file a report and investigate the issue.
Many people who have said microaggressions don’t know what they said or did was wrong. That doesn’t change the impact of the behavior, but knowing this can make a difference and help you lead the conversation with curiosity instead of anger. As a result, you can foster a dialogue around compassion and understanding to address the situation.
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