The Concept of Incivility

This session examines how incivility develops, how it can escalate into bullying when ignored, and why formal policies alone rarely resolve the problem.
Participants will explore the organisational drivers of incivility, including workload pressure, hierarchy, leadership behaviour, and poorly designed systems. 
CPD HOURS: 1
 Registration Year 2025/2026

Course Content

Incivility in healthcare is often minimised as stress, personality differences, or “just the culture.” Yet research shows that low-level rudeness, dismissive communication, eye-rolling, exclusion, and unaddressed tension create measurable harm — reducing psychological safety, increasing errors, and driving staff disengagement.

This session examines how incivility develops, how it can escalate into bullying when ignored, and why formal policies alone rarely resolve the problem.
Participants will explore the organisational drivers of incivility, including workload pressure, hierarchy, leadership behaviour, and poorly designed systems.

The session unpacks the shift from a punitive, policy-driven response to a restorative, early-intervention approach that prioritises informal conversations, awareness-level coaching, and guided interventions before behaviours become entrenched.

Practical scenarios will support reflection on how to have difficult conversations with dignity, how to intervene as a bystander, and how leaders shape culture through what they tolerate, reward, and model. This session reframes incivility as both a workforce wellbeing issue and a patient safety risk — and positions every clinician as an active contributor to a culture of civility and respect.

Why this Session may be Relevant to your Work

This session is relevant to my work as a nurse because incivility directly affects patient safety, team communication, and my own wellbeing. When low-level disrespect becomes normalised, staff are less likely to speak up, clarify concerns, or challenge unsafe practice. Understanding how to recognise and address incivility early strengthens professional accountability, supports safe clinical decision-making, and helps protect both patient outcomes and my own resilience in the workplace.

Learning Outcomes

In this session, you will:
  • Differentiate between incivility, unreasonable behaviour, and bullying, and explain why early identification matters for patient safety and team functioning.
  • Describe the impact of uncivil workplace behaviours on staff wellbeing, psychological safety, and quality of care.
  • Apply a restorative, early-intervention approach to address low-level incivility before escalation. 
  • Identify leadership and system-level factors that contribute to incivility and outline practical actions to promote a culture of civility and respect in their own workplace. 

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Sue Walker

RN, BN, BN (ADMIN), MPHC, MACN

Sue is the Director and Co-Founder of Nurses for Nurses (NFNN), delivering national and international conferences, study tours and professional development programs for nurses and midwives. She is also a key contributor to Nursing CPD, an online education platform supporting nurses to meet NMBA Continuing Professional Development requirements through accessible, evidence-based learning that is firmly grounded in real-world practice.