ESSAY NUM1102 Communication Skills For Nurses And Midwives

NUM1102 Communication Skills For Nurses And Midwives

Answer:

Introduction

In nursing, the nurses must have good and effective communication skills (Ali, 2018). During the health assessment of the patient, when the nurse conducts an interview with the patient, to obtain the subjective information from them, the nurse should have effective communication skills (Alhassan, 2019). In absence of it, the nurse cannot obtain accurate data which is very useful in planning the quality care for the patient (Alhassan, 2019). To obtain the data and information about the patient in detail, the nurse should interact with the patient in such an effective way, that it will be easy for the patient to give all the deep and required information (Alhassan, 2019). So, the nurse should utilized effective interview and communication skills to obtain detailed information about the patient (Ali, 2018). To enhance the communication skills of the nurses, a health assessment interview was conducted and the fictitious information was employed to ensure confidentiality (Ali, 2018). This essay will analyze the recorded interview and discuss the evidence-based strategies. This essay will argue on the essential skills needed for questioning, body language, and empathy used during the interview. These interviewing techniques help in improving the nurse’s communication skills to obtain detailed answer from the patients (Alhassan, 2019).

Techniques of questioning

For obtaining good information from the participants the questions must be asked in such a way to get detailed answers (Barratt, 2019). Generally, in an interview, two types of questions are asked, open-ended questions and close-ended questions (Ali, 2018). If the purpose of the interview is to obtain detailed information including the feelings and emotions of the patient and their family then open-ended questions are asked (Barratt, 2019). These questions generally asked about what, when, and how the patient feels (Barratt, 2019). This type of question inspired the patients to respond openly and give detailed answers (Ali, 2018). Closed questions only allow the patients to answer yes or no and it does not provide any detailed information (Barratt, 2019). Depending on the situation, the nurse can choose from the given two types of questions (Ali, 2018). When the nurse asked the patient to explain how the incidence takes place, then it is open-ended questions, and the patient will give detailed information about the situation (Barratt, 2019).

Body language of the patient

It is very important for the nurse to understand the body language of the patient like their expressions, gestures, movement of hands and legs, and eye contact (Ali, 2018). This is the nonverbal communication that assists the nurse to observe the hidden emotions of the patient (Ali, 2018). It is very important for the nurse to have strong skills to identify the body language of the patient as sometimes the patient can feel hesitant to answer some questions at that time these nonverbal communication skills work (Vasanthakumari, 2019). Listening actively is also important; it lets the patient feel that now their problem can be identified and solved by someone (MacLean, & et al., 2019). The actions like nodding the head, and maintaining eye contact assure the patient that their conversation has effectively listened (Ali, 2018). During the health assessment interview, the patient may be anxious, stressed, and nervous so the body language of the nurse should be very positive to comfort the patient (Vasanthakumari, 2019). Maintaining proper eye contact shows the integrity and sincerity of the nurse. For effective interview outcomes, it is very important to maintain good and positive body language (Vasanthakumari, 2019).

Empathy

In nursing, empathy is the basic feature that the nurses should have so as to establish a strong connection with the patients (Alhassan, 2019). Understanding the problem from the patient’s view of the point is very important for the nurse (Alhassan, 2019). While giving quality care to the patients, the nurse should have a desire to provide care and help them (Gümü?soy & et al., 2020). Sometimes it has been observed that the nurse has developed empathy toward the patient but they are unable to express that in their care (Alhassan, 2019). In that case, the patient remains deprived of the empathy that they need (Alhassan, 2019). So, the nurse must show and express empathy toward the patient (Alhassan, 2019). This can be achieved by asking the patients about their physical needs and what are they feeling in the current situation (Gümü?soy & et al., 2020). Until or unless the pain and emotions of the patient are experienced by the nurse it cannot be possible to express and give empathy to the patient (Gümü?soy & et al., 2020). If the expression of empathy is effectively done then the patient will receive quality care and achieve self-confidence and satisfaction (Gümü?soy & et al., 2020).

During the interview for example the nurse has asked the patient about the pain he is experiencing.

Nurse: Oh! You might be feeling so much pain. (1:30)

Patient: Yes, it is really painful.

Nurse: How you have hurt your ankle?

Patient: I have slipped while playing football.

Nurse: I understand what you are feeling right now. Are you comfortable or it is paining too much?

Patient: No, I am ok.

This situation is showing that the nurse is concerned about the patient. Ultimately, the patient will feel comfortable that the nurse can understand his situation and will provide good care to him (Gümü?soy & et al., 2020). In this example, the nurse has asked the rate of pain the patient has so if he is in discomfort providing the answer he can immediately be asked the nurse for the necessary action to be done (Gümü?soy & et al., 2020). The patient should feel a sense of protection during the health assessment interview. The nurse should use the principle of mindfulness in such situations (Durmaz, Serin, & Polat, 2018). The nurse should have the ability to express empathy towards the patient by reflecting on the patient’s experiences (Gümü?soy & et al., 2020).

Conclusion

It can be concluded after analyzing the health assessment interview that good communication skills were used by the nurse to interact with the patient (Alhassan, 2019). While interviewing the patient during health assessment, the use of open-ended questions is beneficial as they help in obtaining detailed information about the patient (Barratt, 2019). The observation of the body language of the patient also helps in obtaining necessary hidden information that cannot be obtained through verbal communication (Ali, 2018). It is important that the nurse should also have positive body language so the patient can feel comfortable and confident (Alhassan, 2019). The nurse should be able to express empathy toward the patient by reflecting on the patient’s experiences (Alhassan, 2019). If the nurse will show no concern for the feelings and emotions of the patient then it will be difficult for the nurse to gain the confidence of the patient (Alhassan, 2019). The nurse should make the patient feel safe and secure during the interview. Effective communication skills are very important for the nurse to assess the patient and provide effective treatment and quality care to the patient (Barratt, 2019). Good interview techniques like types of questions used, observation of body language, and expressing empathy also help in obtaining necessary and detailed information about the patient (Alhassan, 2019).

References

Alhassan, M. (2019). Effect of a 2-day communication skills training on nursing and midwifery students’ empathy: a randomized controlled trial. BMJ open, 9(3), e023666.

Alhassan, M. (2019). Nursing and Midwifery Students’ Communication Skills Training: A Systematic Review. Journal of Advances in Medicine and Medical Research, 1-10.

Ali, M. (2018). Communication skills 3: non-verbal communication. Nursing times, 114(2), 41-42.

Barratt, J. (2019). Developing clinical reasoning and effective communication skills in advanced practice. Nursing Standard, 34(2).

Durmaz, Y. C., Serin, E. K., & Polat, H. T. (2018). Determination of Problem-Solving and Communication Skills of Nursing/Midwifery Students. International journal of caring sciences, 11(3).

Ghasemi, S. S., Olyaie, N., & Shami, S. (2018). An investigation into the correlation between emotional intelligence and communication skills among nursing students. Prof. RK Sharma, 12(3), 178.

Gümü?soy, S., Dal, N. A., Beyda?, K. D., & Toker, E. (2020). Intercultural awareness, communication, and empathy skills in nurses and midwives working in provinces with mass migration. Perspectives in Psychiatric Care.

Kaplan Serin, E., Alp Dal, N., & ?kde Öner, Ö. (2020). The communication skills and empathic tendencies of nursing and midwifery students to reproductive pattern section of the care plan. Sexuality and Disability, 38(1), 161-171.

MacLean, S., Geddes, F., Kelly, M., & Della, P. (2019). Video reflection in discharge communication skills training with simulated patients: a qualitative study of nursing students’ perceptions. Clinical Simulation in Nursing, 28, 15-24.

Pangh, B., Jouybari, L., Vakili, M. A., Sanagoo, A., & Torik, A. (2019). The effect of reflection on nurse-patient communication skills in emergency medical centers. Journal of caring sciences, 8(2), 75.

Vasanthakumari, S. (2019). Soft skills and its application in work place. World Journal of Advanced Research and Reviews, 3(2), 066-072.