WGU Therapeutic Communication Discussion

WGU Therapeutic Communication Discussion

Therapeutic communication is important to ensure patients are part of treatment planning. Provide discussion (250-350 words) of the following: 

• How would you evaluate a patient’s ability to understand your instruction and their current knowledge base about their problem? What characteristics of the patient would be helpful?
• How would you be certain that the patient understands your medication instruction?
• What methods of therapeutic communication would be useful in advanced practice?

Nursing Therapeutic Communication Sample Paper

Ethics in nursing denotes the moral norms and principles that guide the behavior of nurses towards patients, colleague nurses and fellow health workers. Also, ethics guide the decision-making process. Communication is an integral component of ethics. The principal type of communication is the therapeutic communication between the patient and the healthcare provider. Therapeutic communication between the nurse and the patient is particularly important as it helps ensure positive patient outcomes by enhancing the likelihood of establishing reliable solutions.

To begin with, therapeutic communication entails conveying information to the patient to assist the therapeutic process. By engaging in therapeutic communication, the nurse enables the client to solve his/her health problems, problems with other concerned persons and the environment (Abdolrahimi et al., 2017). Results from the study by Abdolrahimi et al. also show that therapeutic communication is directly proportional to patient satisfaction. Patients who receive adequate information from their care provider are more likely to report higher levels of satisfaction, whereas patients who get little to no therapeutic communication would report lower satisfaction levels.

Worth noting is that therapeutic communication centers on the patient’s physical, mental and emotional health. Various techniques of practicing this form of communication exist, and include using silence, accepting, giving recognition, offering self, giving broad openings, active listening, summarizing, reflecting and focusing (Nisa et al., 2017). Owing to the wide variety of techniques available, this paper will focus on a few selected approaches.

Often, most people tend to overlook the importance of silence in therapeutic communication. Even in contemporary communication, the majority of speakers often mistake being wordy for effective communication. Whereas it is advisable to be open in expressing opinions, silence provides the ample time to consider the words that have been spoken before engaging in the next part of the conversation (Nisa et al., 2017). Silence provides a rest during the talk and enables one to prepare adequately to approach a new topic with composure.

On the other hand, acceptance yields remarkable results for patients as it enables patients to feel acknowledged as their words have been affirmed (Nisa et al., 2017). However, it should be differentiated from agreement in that the former has a deeper touch of understanding. A patient would be more likely to readily receive care if he/she felt that the nurse understood them and took their views seriously.

Giving recognition is a simple task, but one that is at times missed. It encompasses acknowledging a patient’s behavior while highlighting the notable attributes without exceeding the compliment (Nisa et al., 2017). Whereas complimenting the patient on tasks such as making the bed or washing oneself well would be commendable, commenting on proper taking of medication would improve drug adherence. The latter would be instrumental in promoting fast recovery. A simple statement such as “I noted that today you have taken all your medications” would positively reinforce the behavior without engaging in flattery.

Finally, active listening is another important tenet of therapeutic communication. The act involves being mentally, physically and emotionally present with the patient as he/she describes the illness (Abdolrahimi et al., 2017). Regarding patient interaction matters, both verbal and non-verbal components of communication play a crucial role in the care process. Non-verbal cues may include nodding, which may motivate the patient to keep speaking. It enables the nurse to demonstrate that he/she is interested in what the patient is saying, and is engaging them throughout the conversation.

In a nutshell, the significance of therapeutic communication between the nurse and the patient draws from the fact that it shapes the course of care and enhances trust between the parties involved. Therapeutic communication consists of various tenets that make the patient part of the treatment process. Most importantly, the different aspects of therapeutic communication contribute to effective patient care not only by defining the patient-nurse interaction, but also by influencing the patient’s emotional health during the period of care.

References

• Abdolrahimi, M., Ghiyasvandian, S., Zakerimoghadam, M., & Ebadi, A. (2017). Therapeutic communication in nursing students: A Walker & Avant concept analysis. Electronic physician, 9(8), 4968.
• Nisa, S. N. U., Hussain, M., Afzal, M., & Gilani, S. A. (2017). Quality of nurse patient therapeutic communication and overall patient satisfaction during their hospitalization stay.