The film “Knives Out”, filmed in 2018 and released in 2019, is an example of drawing the line between therapeutic and non-therapeutic communication. In the film, young nurse Marta Cabrera works for wealthy novelist Harlan Thrombey (Johnson, 2019). Having confused the vials with drugs, the nurse injects the man with a lethal dose of morphine, after which he commits suicide, wanting to justify the nurse (Johnson, 2019). Subsequently, it turns out that the medicine vials were changed in advance to frame the nurse and disinherit her from Harlan Thrombey (Johnson, 2019). “Knives Out ” provides an example of how therapeutic communication between nurse and client can get out of control and no longer conform to the principles of competent interaction.
Therapeutic communication involves maintaining a distance between the healthcare professional and the client. The main difference between therapeutic communication and non-therapeutic communication is that the nurse acts as a leading agent, seeking to ensure the comfort and well-being of the client (Potter et al., 2019). Principles of interpersonal communication such as responsibility and respect are also fundamental to therapeutic communication (Beebe et al., 2020). Marta definitely treats her client with respect, but she is irresponsible. The nurse allows the establishment of excessively close personal contact with her client, which is unacceptable in therapeutic communication. Martha’s irresponsibility also lies in the fact that she did not check the name of the medicine vial, which she should have done with every injection.
From the phenomenological approach, it is necessary to analyze the situation as it appears at first glance. Firstly, the viewer learns that the nurse made a fatal injection mistake, which led to the unintentional death of her client. Communication between the nurse and the patient seems too personal, which provokes her to relax, which leads to such an error. The replacement of medicinal ampoules is not a critical fact since Marta is beyond the scope of therapeutic interaction in any case.
During communication between Martha and Thrombey, there are no hidden meanings or special words, they are open with each other, which demonstrates their personal rapprochement. Martha is the only person in Thrombey’s inner circle with whom he speaks directly and without overtones. In contrast to this communication, the director includes the intrigues of the rest of the family, who work together to discredit Martha. A distinctive feature of communication between the nurse and the patient demonstrates his special attitude towards her, which should not have arisen in the course of interpersonal communication.
There is no hidden conflict between the nurse and the client; on the contrary, their communication is driven by the principles of care and compassion. Martha provides full palliative care with the fundamental principles of honesty and openness (Murray, 2016). However, it is compassion that pushes Thrombey to commit suicide, being an impulse to protect a person close to him. Despite the fact that the nurse showed the important fundamental principles of therapeutic communication: respect, compassion and caring, she was irresponsible and allowed the establishment of close personal bonds with the client, which led to tragic consequences.
In conclusion, “Knives Out” invites viewers to draw a clear line between acceptable and unacceptable in communication between a nurse and a health care user. Martha had to gently cut off the established overly personal connection with the client, and adhere to the established boundaries in organizing the therapeutic interaction with him. The nurse should act as the most active agent of communication, guided by the principles of care, compassion, respect and responsibility during interaction.
References
Beebe S., Beebe S., Redmond M., & Salem-Wiseman, L. (2020). Interpersonal communication: Relating to others. (8th Canadian ed.). Pearson.
Johnson, R. (2019). Knives out [Film]. Lionsgate.
Murray, K. (2016). Essentials in hospice and palliative care: A practical resource for every nurse. Victoria, BC: Life and Death Matters.
Potter, P.A., Stockert, P., Perry, A.G., & Hall, A. (Eds). (2019). Canadian fundamentals of nursing. (6th Canadian ed.). Elsevier Canada.