Communicating Effectively with the Patient as a Nurse
Nurses are put in the front line of effectively communicating with their patients. This is not always an easy task, but it is essential to do it effectively. Nurses are faced every day with dealing with patient complaints about the delivery of care, complaints about staff working on the unit or the patients perception about hospital policy.
All nurses need to keep one fact forefront in their minds, remember that the patients and also their family members are the main customer and revenue for the hospital. Patients expect respect, communication and honesty. If you do not communicate well, the patient may believe you are hiding something and therefore are dishonest. Complaints need to handled expeditiously and with tact and respect. Hospitals avoid lawsuits when patients feel that their complaints have been heard and handled.
Remembering that nursing has a language of its own,keep in mind that most patients are unfamiliar with medical words. Always be careful to use words that patient will be able to understand. explain all procedures so that the patient knows what to expect. Never display an attitude when speaking with a patient, and ask the patient to make sure they have a clear understanding of what they have been told. Sometimes this takes several explanations before they understand.
Always maintain privacy and confidentiality when dealing with sensitive or difficult information with the patients families. You may need to remove a patient to another area if possible. Patients do not want other patients or families to know private health issues, if nursing maintains the privacy and confidentiality of their patients, communication will be more effective.
With a very diverse society sometimes you may need to find an interpreter if the patient does not understand the English language well. The other option is to contact a family member who has a good grasp of the English language. Before you contact a family member, get the permission of the patient. Some patients may not want certain family members to have knowledge about their medical conditions.
Cultural diversity also leads to differences in how to communicate with patient and families. Some cultures prevent certain types of communicating from being excepted. They may have different customs that make it difficult to share information. There are cultures that are afraid to ask questions. Hospital organizations need to provide all nursing staff with education about dealing with different cultures. This will help the staff become sensitive to some of the differences and area of culturally sensitive responses.
Communication is ongoing, complex issue that all nurses face daily when caring for their patients. Using questions that begin with "how" or "what" can help the patient to keep focus on their concerns. It also provides the opportunity for the patient to think about what was said and ask further questions if they need additional information.. Gender, different cultures and backgrounds all have an impact on communicating effectively with the patient. Always show sensitivity to patient's responses and careful answer their questions. Communication is a skill that gets better every time you communicate effectively.
