Nurses have Empathy for Patients
The patient first of all must know that the nurse cares and it is the duty of the nurse to show her that they do. They do this by word.action and by deed. Communication between patients and nurses are important. Patients look to nurses for guidance.They need to know about their condition and who can do this better than nurses?. They often feel alone and need to know that someone they can trust will be there for them. As patients, they are in a new situation and are no longer in control. Often they are frightened. You must understand this henceforth undiscovered part of them to effectively deal with their suffering.
Approach them as the genuine person you know them to be even if that means dealing and loving that part of them that turns you off.. You may have liked them better with their masks on, but get over that. As a nurse, it's the truth of the person you are after. Their truth has torn the mask from their face. You are there to let them know they are not to face the world alone. This is the ideal of nursing, that part of this dream job that led you into this profession in the first place.
They trust you to be their eyes, their hands and their feet and to keep them safe from harm. This huge, cold, new building they are now in is frightening and in a time when comfort and assurance is what they most need. You won't have much time with them but make the moments mean something. A gentle touch of the cheek, a smile, a little squeeze on the hand, anything that shows them that you care. It may take several of these small little sessions to put an anxious patient at ease, but take my word for it, these are the times when nurses make inroads into the hearts and minds of others.Be brusque and impatient and more worried about your own internal conflicts and these will show to those in your care you are only putting in your time and collecting your paycheck. Times such as these happen to all some time in their nursing career, but understand you will long be remembered for what you didn't do. You didn't calm the anxiety and erase the fears of your patient. Therefore, make it a habit to put these behind your own mask when you are at the bedside of someone who is desperately in need of a little tender loving care. You know what I am talking about, that kind of genuine caring that comes easily to nurses - or so it seems.Engage the patient with their life. Check their chart to see where they live or inquire about them from others who know them. Talk to their family whenever they visit, ask them to tell you about the person in your care. Get to know that part of them that makes them feel secure and loved. Talk to them of their dog, their grandchildren, whatever else that brings a soft glow to their face. In other words, be there for them. Make a difference for them and refresh yourself in the knowledge of once again delving into the reasons you went into nursing in the first place. To help the suffering of the world and to stop the kind of sickness that took your dearly loved grandparents away from you.Remember how it was when you were little and how impressed you were when the nurse next door put a splint on your cat's leg when she was hopping around on a sore foot? Your patients are there now waiting for you to bolster them a bit. You can help them make some sense out of their suffering. The doctor is far too busy to give them much of their time so you are their go-between. Listen carefully to what they tell you and you may unwittingly find clues that may help in their diagnosis. Who knows what a Little smile, a pat on the hand, a extra blanket, a pair of warm socks can do to a frightened patient? Nurses know, that's who.
