The Importance of Therapeutic Communication in Nursing
The primary goal of information sharing in a healthcare institution is to foster positive changes in expertise and behavioral mindset. Understanding how to show kindness and provide help while also dealing with the consequences of bad news is a crucial ability for nurses, as it enhances health outcomes and patient comfort. The viability of the communication that results from the interaction between staff and patients highly depends on the sensitivity of the staff.
However, the nature of the workplace organization and the team’s disengagement are barriers to effective communication. Communication qualities are essential for good governance and achieving organizational objectives. Institutions expect nurses who provide immediate patient care to possess empathetic skills to meet healthcare requirements.
Description of the Clinical Incident
The incident to be reviewed occurred many years back while I was a practicing nurse operating as a wound care nurse. A 46-year-old man was admitted to the Adult Rehabilitation Ward with severe chest pains. While admitted to the rehabilitation ward, I noted that different medical professionals had examined his chest ailments. He required an intricate procedure because his condition was obscenely unique, and that meant he had to lose one lung.
Being short-staffed, the nurse charged with caring for the patient detailed the procedure to be done in an unempathetic manner. While accessing his record, I saw that the patient appeared utterly depressed. I was unsure whether I should intervene and explain the procedure, but I chose to leave and detail the head nurse. This resulted in an uproar from the nurse in charge, who did not appreciate how the other nurse had disclosed the information.
Personal Response and Emotional Reflection
I was unsure whether I should have attempted to comfort the patient at the time, as I perceived the situation as irreversible. Being taught in medical school not to be emotionally attached to patients, I pitied the patient as he seemed honest at heart. When confronted with the man’s sadness, I felt uneasy and, to some extent, helpless (Lotfi et al., 2019, p. 1190). I assumed that thoughts or emotional gestures would be ineffective in alleviating his grief. Overall, I needed more confidence in managing the circumstances and was uncertain whether my involvement would be effective.
I kept returning to the scene in my mind, trying to figure out what should have been accomplished instead. In reflection, it prompted me to reconsider the role of therapeutic dialogue in my profession. Leading up to the incident, I did not consider patient psychological wellness as part of my job as a nurse. I assumed all I had to do was deliver medications and treatments, conduct tests, document medical histories, and educate patients.
Nonetheless, I should have done another critical function in the abovementioned case. I had to go through the situation to learn that a comprehensive view of treatment necessitates therapeutic communication (Kelly et al., 2018, p. 209). Empathy and patient consolation are essential functions of nurses that are sometimes disregarded.
Critical Reflection and Professional Learning
Some healthcare experts find it challenging to convey unpleasant information and often feel mentally unprepared; hence, they convey it without sympathy. Patients who lack these skills may experience additional stress, have poorer psychosocial development, and have poorer health outcomes. Furthermore, how the news is presented might impact patients’ comprehension of the circumstance and their commitment to therapy (Fowler et al., 2021, p. 1487). Multiple methods and strategies for delivering bad news and coping with its consequences were established in response to the adverse effects of the head nurse. Medical professionals must review their awareness and provide empathy after conveying the information.
A medical practitioner is expected to accept the sorrow of the circumstance and base the patient-doctor connection on compassion and understanding in a compassion-perspective approach. However, the patient and the relative strategy appears more helpful, as excess empathy might be harmful and limit information flow (Ng & Bronya, 2019, p. 792). In the case of complex surgery, the head nurse insisted that the patient should receive extra psychological support. These patients frequently go through the six grief phases: rejection, rage, bargaining, sadness, and acceptance, and they are susceptible to anxiety, despair, and body image difficulties (Strandås & Terese, 2018, p. 15). As a result, it is critical to give a patient an alternative for coping with the mental and psychological consequences of the news.
Applying Reflection to Future Nursing Practice
I now fully realize that conveying and dealing with the implications of bad news is an unavoidable part of the nursing profession. The encounter made me aware of parts of my career growth that require additional focus and enhancement. As a result, I endeavor to heed the head nurse’s advice and be more compassionate in my clinical work, not underestimating the importance of patient interaction.
I provide patients with psychological and emotional comfort, soothing them to the extent of my skill and expertise, particularly when they have recently received distressing news (Fowler et al., 2021, p. 1487). Because of the episode, I realized that my acts could impact a patient’s mental health. I also ceased assuming that other medical personnel would provide adequate emotional assistance. Furthermore, I recognize that I am not helpless in the face of a patient’s grief.
The event taught me the value of constructive interaction in nursing and the importance of using it in my nursing practice. Understanding how to offer comfort and assistance, and handle the effects of bad news, is an essential skill for nurses, as it influences health outcomes and patient satisfaction. Furthermore, I became more aware of my sentiments and how they can impede me from behaving in the best interests of a patient. Overall, giving unpleasant news and helping patients cope with it has become a more significant emphasis in my professional practice.
Bibliography
Fowler, Karen R., Leslie K. Robbins, and Angela Lucero. 2021. “Nurse Manager Communication and Outcomes for Nursing: An Integrative Review.” Journal of Nursing Management 29, (6): 1486–1495.
Kelly, Martina Ann, Lara Nixon, Caitlin McClurg, Albert Scherpbier, Nigel King, and Tim Dornan. 2018. “Experience of Touch in Health Care: A Meta-Ethnography Across the Health Care Professions.” Qualitative Health Research 28, (2): 200–212.
Lotfi, Mojgan, Vahid Zamanzadeh, Leila Valizadeh, and Mohammad Khajehgoodari. 2019. “Assessment of Nurse–Patient Communication and Patient Satisfaction from Nursing Care.” Nursing Open 6, (3): 1189-1196.
Ng, Janet HY, and Bronya HK Luk. 2019. “Patient Satisfaction: Concept Analysis in the Healthcare Context.” Patient Education and Counseling 102, (4): 790–796.
Strandås, Maria, and Terese Bondas. 2018. “The Nurse–Patient Relationship as a Story of Health Enhancement in Community Care: A Meta‐Ethnography.” Journal of Advanced Nursing 74, (1): 11-22.