Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
Spalding University
Civility is defined as “An authentic respect for
others requiring time, presence, a willingness
to engage in genuine discourse, and an
intention to seek common ground” (Clark,
2013).
P. M. Forni (2002) describes civility as a form of
goodness that includes a benevolent and
thoughtful attitude in regards to other
individuals.
Incivility is described by Merriam-Webster
(214) simply as “a rude or discourteous act or
behavior.”
The North Carolina Board of Nursing (2011)
describes it as “any action that is offensive,
intimidating or hostile that interferes with the
learning or practice environment.”
Uncivil behavior is often excused or
unrecognized. Most individuals do not see his
or her behavior as uncivil.
Examples of uncivil behavior (Harris, 2011)
The joint commission believes that
incivility is a safety issue.
Intimidating and disruptive
behaviors contribute to med
errors, poor patient satisfaction,
adverse outcomes, increased cost
of care, and loss of qualified
personnel.
Safety and quality of care depend
on collaboration of the healthcare
team.
Behaviors that threaten
performance need to be addressed
(The Joint Commission, 2008).
Joint Commission (2008) has recommended
actions to promote civil behavior and handle
incivility in the workplace.
A civility assessment was conducted on my unit
using 10 individuals present at a recent staff
meeting. The individuals included 2 clinical
assistants, 2 unit secretaries and 4 nurses.
The method of education was a handout and
discussion of civility.
Each individual agreed to take the Civility
Quotient Assessment to rate the organization and
his/her self.
The lowest rating for each question was 1 and the
highest was 10.
Lowest possible score – 22
Highest possible score – 220
Some questions were skipped either due to
irrelevance or misunderstanding.
Skipped questions - Do you honestly assess the
relative strengths and weaknesses of your staff
and operation and then act upon those
findings?
Do you allow your staff to be vulnerable and
human while supporting their growth and
development?
The questions were designed to be a self
assessment for each individual.
All individuals rated themselves high on the
civility questionnaire, but verbally discussed
that they have seen acts of incivility in the
workplace.
This questionnaire could have been adapted to
assess the workplace civility rather than just
individual incivility.
Civility Quotient Assessment
http://devsite.billpturner.com/wp-
content/uploads/2014/05/Civility-Quotient-
Assessment.pdf
Clark, C. (2013). Civility Matters. Retrieved from
http://hs.boisestate.edu/civilitymatters/index.htm
Forni, P. M. (2002). Choosing Civility. New York: St. Martin’s
Press.
Harris, C. T. (2011). Incivility in Nursing. NC Nursing Bulletin.
Fall 2011. Retrieved
fromhttp://www.ncbon.com/myfiles/downloads/course-
bulletin-offerings-articles/bulletin-article-fall-2011-incivility-in-
nursing.pdf
The Joint Commission. (2008). Behaviors that undermine a culture
of safety. The Sentinel Event. Issue 40. Retrieved from
http://www.jointcommission.org/assets/1/18/SEA_40.pdf
Ranson, A. Civility Quotient Assessment. Retrieved from
http://devsite.billpturner.com/wp-
content/uploads/2014/05/Civility-Quotient-Assessment.pdf