Introduction
The provision of patient-centered care is one of the nurses’ priorities these days, which is associated with increased interest in interpersonal communication as well as interprofessional collaboration. Nursing practitioners have to perform their duties in highly demanding settings that are characterized by a considerable workload and time shortage (Arnold & Boggs, 2019). Nursing professionals often lack the time and skills to develop proper relationships with the patient, which is associated with adverse effects on patient satisfaction and outcomes (Foronda, MacWilliams, & McArthur, 2016). It is noteworthy a substantial proportion of the current research is concerned with cancer treatment and palliative care as these settings have significant peculiarities (Banerjee et al., 2017). However, nursing practitioners working in any department needs training as this medical staff is in direct contact with patients with diverse health issues, so nursing professionals have to be effective communicators. This paper includes a brief description of a quality improvement initiative regarding the communication skills development of nurses working in all departments or clinical settings.
Aims and Target Population
The primary purpose of the initiative is to improve nurses’ communication skills they use when interacting with patients and other healthcare practitioners. After the completion of training, nurses will be able to develop proper relationships with patients, their families, as well as share patient-related data with other practitioners involved. The program can be utilized in diverse clinical settings. The initiative involves the collaboration of nurses and physicians, which is one of the central premises for the provision of high-quality care (Foronda et al., 2016). Nurses will be taught to listen actively, interact with families, and collaborate with physicians. Therefore, the program will be characterized by the collaboration between nurses and physicians. The implementation of the program will require paying considerable attention to scheduling as healthcare professionals often have different shifts.
The Benefits of the Initiative
The proposed program will be beneficial for every department as it will equip nurses with the skills necessary to perform their daily tasks more effectively. Proper communication will improve patient satisfaction and have a positive impact on patient outcomes (Bullington et al., 2019). Nurses will be able to identify patients’ needs and address them. The creation of a suitable atmosphere of trust and mutual respect will lead to the increased compliance of patients with the developed treatment plan. The knowledge of effective communication patterns will enable nurses to manage time in a more efficient way as nurses will elicit all the necessary details regarding patients’ needs and their treatment. The acquisition of communication skills will be favorable for interprofessional collaboration. Foronda et al. (2016) state that the effectiveness of interactions between physicians and nurses is undermined by the lack of confidence, egos, and poor structural hierarchies. Medical staff should obtain knowledge and acquire skills to overcome these issues. Cross-functional teams have proved their efficiency, so it is essential to ensure their appropriate functioning.
Interprofessional Collaboration
Since the focus of the initiative is on the improvement of communication between patients and nurses, as well as physicians and nursing practitioners, the program will require the involvement of these healthcare professionals. It is noteworthy that physicians will not take part in every training session, which is rather unnecessary. Certain educational materials will be sent via the information systems used in the facility. Some training sessions will involve exclusively nursing professionals. Cross-functional teams will be trained once in two weeks. During these sessions, the staff will discuss various patterns and effective models. Banerjee et al. (2017) note that role play is a winning educational instrument that is widely used in clinical settings.
Cost Justification
Healthcare facilities face considerable financial issues and have to tighten their budgets. It has also been acknowledged that hospitals tend to reduce their investment in professional development. The present initiative will require limited investment as it will not involve the use of external trainers and expensive materials. Advanced nurse practitioners will meet to develop the program that can be employed in their departments. The program will include components of the projects described by Bullington et al. (2019) and Banerjee et al. (2017). Prior to the introduction of any changes to the suggested program, specific gaps in nurses’ knowledge must be identified. A brief questionnaire based on the topics discussed during the training will be given to the participants. Based on the findings, the present program will be changed accordingly.
The nursing leaders will be paid for the hours spent on the modification of the program, as well as its implementation. This funding will motivate the nursing practitioners to invest the necessary amount of time and effort, which will contribute to the project’s effectiveness. The participants will meet on a weekly basis during their working hours. Nurses will receive materials via the employed information system and will be able to study at home as well. Each week the participants will meet to practice and discuss the data they learned at home. Therefore, the costs will be minimal, which is important for many hospitals.
The Evaluation of the Program
In order to identify whether the initiative achieved its goals and can be utilized in the future, it is critical to develop sound evaluation criteria. The participants will complete questionnaires used before the start of the program. If the answers are similar to previous results, the initiative is ineffective and should be modified or abandoned. Apart from this direct check, it is important to implement another study to identify patient satisfaction, with the focus on people’s attitudes towards personnel and the relationship between patients and medical staff. The participants should also give their feedback concerning their views on the strengths and weaknesses of the provided training. It is important to analyze this aspect since it has an impact on nurses’ motivations and performance.
Conclusion
To sum up, the proposed initiative will have a positive effect on the performance of nursing professionals who will be equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills to provide high-quality patient-centered care. The program will be beneficial who will develop appropriate communication patterns to identify patients’ needs and address them. The program involves nurses and physicians who will be trained to collaborate effectively. The barriers typical of the interactions between these healthcare professionals will be eliminated or, at least, acknowledged and diminished. The focus will be on discussions and role play, while the participants will study certain materials in their free time. This initiative does not need substantial investment, which is also a strength as hospitals have tight budgets with no funds to be allocated unwisely. However, some investment will be needed so it is essential to make sure that the implementation of the program will involve responsible participants committed to the organizational goals.
References
Arnold, E. C., & Boggs, K. U. (2019). Interpersonal relationships e-book: Professional communication skills for nurses (8th ed.). ST. Louis, MO: Elsevier Health Sciences.
Banerjee, S. C., Manna, R., Coyle, N., Penn, S., Gallegos, T. E., Zaider, T., … Parker, P. A. (2017). The implementation and evaluation of a communication skills training program for oncology nurses. Translational Behavioral Medicine, 7(3), 615-623. Web.
Bullington, J., Söderlund, M., Bos Sparén, E., Kneck, Å., Omérov, P., & Cronqvist, A. (2019). Communication skills in nursing: A phenomenologically-based communication training approach. Nurse Education in Practice, 39, 136-141. Web.
Foronda, C., MacWilliams, B., & McArthur, E. (2016). Interprofessional communication in healthcare: An integrative review. Nurse Education in Practice, 19, 36-40. Web.