Series Documents How Nurses Experience Racism

After the murder of George Floyd in 2020, and on the heels of a nationwide awakening of the countless murders of people of color, six nurses began to work on creating a series of mini-documentaries that captured the experience of racism in nursing in the U.S.

The “Reckoning with Racism in Nursing” docu-series was created to foster a space for nurses of color to “know they’re not alone,” said Lucinda Canty, PhD, RN, one of the six creators of the series.

“I didn’t learn any history of Black nurses when I was in nursing school. I felt like, ‘am I in the right profession?'” Canty told MedPage Today.

The documentary highlights interviews with 40 minority nurses, mostly African American, who share their experiences with racism throughout their nursing career.

“This initiative started with a group of nurses having web discussions called ‘The Overdue Reckoning with Racism in Nursing.’ White nurses couldn’t talk. This was a platform where our voices were centered,” Canty said.

“We felt like we needed to do something where we could talk about the issues and start moving forward,” she said. “We see the unnecessary harm it causes patients and nurses. And I think that people still don’t know how racism shows up, even people who experience it.”

Several nurses in the documentary discussed racism experienced during their nursing education, citing racist remarks from instructors, and feelings of being the only or one of few racial/ethnic minorities in their cohort.

Canty said hearing similar stories from nurses of different generations particularly struck her. “What was interesting was how some things didn’t change between nurses early in their career and someone like Frankie Manning, who is in her 80s, and recalls similar experiences.”

Retired nurse Frankie Manning reflected on her experience in nursing school during an interview with MedPage Today. “We were the third group of Blacks admitted to that school. One of the nuns who interviewed me didn’t see well. The nun said, ‘We’re going to take you because we need Native nurses.’ She did not understand that I was Black rather than Native.”

Manning realized early on that her experiences with racism in nursing school would only continue as she began to care for patients. “As a nursing student, patients were much more racist in their comments. They would send you out and say, ‘Go get me a nurse to take care of me.’ I was in shock. I didn’t know people were that cruel. I didn’t say anything to faculty because they expected it.”

Nurses interviewed for the documentary also expressed racism directed toward them on the job. Canty reflected on some of her own experiences while listening to these interviews. “I’ve had patients that were complex and needed help and there were nurses in the background just watching. And they were waiting for me to fail,” she said.

Manning recalled her first nursing job offer being taken away from her because she was Black. “The nun who ran the nursing program asked me to teach. I said I’d love to. The day I graduated I got a call and was told Black people couldn’t teach nursing students.”

In the documentary, nurses recounted other experiences of racism, including differences in treatment provided to patients of color, being called racial slurs, and being told they were inferior to the White race. The documentary also highlights nurses reflecting on guidelines from the American Nurses Association to not exhibit bias when delivering care to patients, but didn’t notice any guidelines on how healthcare providers of color were to manage racism in the workplace.

The American Nurses Association (ANA) released a Racial Reckoning Statement in June 2022, acknowledging their purposeful exclusion of Black Nurses from 1916-1964, and that racism continues to occur in the workplace today.

Canty noted that most Black nurses were not accepted into ANA because of their recommendation in 1965 for nurses to attain a baccalaureate degree in response to the increased complexity of managing patients. “They knew there were chapters not accepting Black nurses. They wanted you to have your bachelor’s degree, when most [Black] nurses at the time, because of systemic issues, were LPNs.”

“We’re still talking about racism like it’s something new,” Manning said. “In the magnet institutions, when they go to the hospital, what do they see? How have they [ANA] looked at the fact that the majority of the leadership in hospitals is White? How are they leading that charge?”

Much more work needs to be done to create an equitable workplace for all, nurses said. Research has shown that racism is a sensitive issue, and can provoke anxiety, shame, and blame. Canty and Manning each spoke about the resilience nurses of color may need to combat experiences of racism.

“You don’t have to know everything. … Don’t let someone demean your skills and knowledge,” Manning said. Canty also encouraged nurses and student nurses to seek resources within schools and nursing organizations.

Continuing to fight for better treatment of nurses of color, the Reckoning with Racism in Nursing committee has received funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to create more mini-documentaries from these interviews. The committee also plans to create a discussion guide to train others on how to discuss these interviews.

“We want to continue moving forward the discussion,” Canty said. “These conversations are not easy. We’re hoping to have a workshop to help people introduce the content and use it in any setting, including the university or hospital.”