Introduction
Nurses play one of the most critical roles in healthcare, which involves acting professionally and applying evidence-based practices in performing different duties. Effective communication helps to facilitate service delivery and is essential for providing high-quality care that meets the needs and expectations of patients. This paper covers a reflection on the role of a nurse in undertaking an assessment. The reflection underscores the importance of providing effective and professional care facilitated through effective communication.
Effective and Professional Relationships in Health and Care
Effective healthcare refers to delivering medical services that result in improved patient health outcomes. It involves using evidence-based medical practices, appropriate diagnoses, and effective treatments. Effective relationships in health and care help to enhance patient outcomes, reduce the spread of disease, and promote overall public health (Hannawa et al., 2021). It leads to more efficient use of healthcare resources, as patients receive the proper care at the right time. Effective healthcare also helps to build trust between patients and healthcare providers, as patients are more likely to be satisfied with their care when they see positive results.
Professional relationships in health and care touch on delivering medical services by qualified and licensed individuals. The individuals obtain adequate and specialized training in their area of focus, such as nursing. The importance of professional healthcare lies in its ability to ensure that patients receive safe and effective medical treatment. Trained medical professionals help to conduct accurate diagnoses for patients to receive appropriate treatments and the best possible outcomes (Tran et al., 2020). Professional relationships in health and care support advancing the field of medicine and improving healthcare delivery. Through ongoing education and training, healthcare professionals stay up-to-date with the latest medical advancements, treatments, and technologies, which helps to improve patient care and outcomes and promotes the overall improvement of the healthcare system.
Effective and professional relationships in health and care are grounded on essential elements. Open and transparent communication helps to build trust between the nurse and the patients and is a foundation for creating professional interaction (Forstner et al., 2021). Open and honest communication can further exist where there is trust that helps to build a collaborative atmosphere. Collaboration involves the close working relationship between different members of a team. It underscores the willingness to collectively create effective and professional associations in the health and care industry. In addition, a professional relationship can exist in an environment where the trained and specialized individual is shown respect for their expertise, opinions, and boundaries is an essential aspect of a professional relationship.
Furthermore, effective and professional relationships in health and care are bonded by empathy. The caregivers and health providers should be empathetic and understanding towards patients, colleagues, and other stakeholders to help build strong connections. Maintaining confidentiality and respecting privacy is also an essential aspect of professional relationships in health and care, as it helps to build trust and maintain ethical standards (Hannawa et al., 2021). Lastly, being flexible and adaptable to changing situations and needs helps to create effective and professional relationships.
Effective Communication in Providing Person-Centered Care
Assessing nursing entails evaluating patients’ health status to determine their conditions, strengths, and problems. This involves collecting information through observation, interview, examination, and review of medical records (Afriyie, 2020). The goal of assessment is to gather comprehensive data to identify the patient’s health status and develop an appropriate care plan. Accordingly, effective communication becomes an essential component in conducting an assessment. When conducting an evaluation, the most crucial communication skills included listening, body language, and social space.
Listening
During the assessment exercise, the patient does the talking, for the most part narrating the condition. The nurse must develop a high level of listening to capture all the necessary information. Active listening is the highest and most effective level of hearing in a patient assessment based on paying complete attention to what a person is saying (Sutherland et al., 2021). While taking the examination, the nurse should listen carefully, show interest, and not interrupt the patient. A high level of listening is mandatory to capture the patient’s content, intent, and feelings. The nurse can be actively engaged by asking questions and paying attention to the non-verbal, visual cues signifying that the other person has something vital to say. This will provide valuable insights into the assessment and could improve patient outcomes. The nurse can fully understand the patient’s concerns, needs, and expectations through active listening.
In addition, active listening helped me to build rapport with the patient, establish trust, and create a positive therapeutic relationship. Such engagement is critical in sensitive or complex cases where patients may be nervous or have difficulty expressing themselves (Babaii et al., 2021). It requires giving the patient full attention, avoiding distractions, and listening without interrupting or making assumptions. This allows the patient to feel heard and understood, which is crucial in establishing trust and creating a comfortable environment for them to share their health concerns and experiences. Through active listening, the nurse can gather important information that may not be readily apparent from a patient’s physical appearance or medical history.
Patient-centered care can be provided by observing the patient’s emotional state, personal beliefs, and cultural background. These aspects should be addressed because they can significantly impact a person’s health and should be considered when making treatment decisions. Active listening provides an opportunity to identify and address the misunderstandings or concerns the patient may have. This ensures that the patient is well-informed about available treatment options, which can lead to better health outcomes and increased patient satisfaction.
Body Language
Body language is an essential aspect of non-verbal communication that plays a crucial role in nursing assessment. It provides important cues to help the nurse figure out the patient’s physical and emotional state (Sibiya, 2018). Body language can also indicate the patient’s level of comfort and cooperation. The nurse can gain crucial acuities into health status and make informed decisions about the best course of treatment. It mainly involves observing the patient’s posture and movements. For example, a tense and guarded posture may indicate pain, and the nurse can adjust their treatment plan accordingly.
Body language can further help in nursing assessment by observing the patient’s facial expressions. Facial expressions provide critical information about a patient’s emotional state and level of distress. The nurse can follow signs such as tense or grimace expressions or relaxed and peaceful expressions that guide the decision-making process regarding the most appropriate course of treatment for the patient. Gestures and movements are additionally crucial as the nurse may observe patient anxiety, signs of being restless or fidgety, or calmness (Tran et al., 2020). These signs can provide a deeper understanding of the patient’s emotional state and help to define the appropriate treatment options.
The nurse can facilitate the provision of patient-centered care by raising the level of cooperation and willingness of the patient to participate in their care. This will reduce the barriers to assessment because a patient who feels cooperative and engaged may exhibit more open and receptive body language (Babaii et al., 2021). This will help the nurse to make informed decisions about the best way to engage the patient in their care and ensure their participation in the treatment process.
Social Space
Social space is a critical component in enhancing effective communication through non-verbal cues. It entails the distance and position separating the nurse and the patient. It can influence the information needed to describe the patient’s comfort level, emotional state, and willingness to participate in their care (Sutherland et al., 2021). The social space gives the nurse a critical opening to assess the patient through observation. The distance of separation may dictate the desire a patient may have or would feel necessary to maintain their comfort and privacy. Feelings of discomfort may push the patient to retreat into their personal space and physically distance themselves from the nurse. Such a barrier can be overcome by ensuring the patient feels comfortable and relaxed. The nurse can then use the opportunity to observe and gain an understanding of the patient’s level of comfort and willingness to participate in their care.
In addition to observing personal space, the nurse should pay close attention to gestures, touch, and eye contact during the assessment. Some patients who feel uncomfortable or anxious may exhibit defensive gestures and avoid physical touch from the nurse (Molina-Mula and Gallo-Estrada, 2020). This calls upon the nurse to be highly attentive to how the patient acts in their space. Eye contact provides a powerful form of non-verbal communication during the assessment. A patient feeling pain, uneasiness, or not wanting to cooperate will avoid eye contact, which is a vital sign of their health. Patient-centered care can be provided by creating rapport and trust with the patient, so they allow the nurse into their social space. Patients who feel comfortable and trusting of the nurse may also maintain appropriate eye contact and participate in their care.
Reflection on Own Performance
My reflection is based on John’s Model of Structured Reflection, which involves six steps. The first step is a description of the situation or experience. In my recent experience acting as a nurse, I encountered a patient who could not express himself. He faced challenges communicating his needs, which adversely affected my medical condition assessment. The experience elicited some feelings of frustration and sadness. I felt frustrated because I could not speak or create a compelling and professional connection with the patient. Therefore, I needed help understanding the patient’s needs, which made it difficult to assess the medical condition. At the same time, I felt sad because the patient appeared to be in pain and could not communicate what was wrong.
However, in evaluating my experience, I realized that this situation is likely to occur in many instances of conducting an assessment. This highlights the value of good communication and effective and professional relationships in health and care. Lotfi et al. (2019) state that communication is crucial in nursing assessment because it establishes an effective and professional nurse-patient connection. Good communication makes it easier to understand the patient’s needs, provide proper care, and ensure positive outcomes. I then opted to analyze the experience, discovering that active listening, body language, and social space are essential in nursing assessment. Communication skills enable the nurse to understand the patient’s medical history, symptoms, and current medical state. This information is crucial in making an accurate diagnosis and providing the appropriate treatment. Good communication also helps build trust and rapport with the patient, leading to a better patient experience and improved health outcomes.
In concluding my experience, good communication and effective professional relationships are essential in nursing assessment. The inability to communicate effectively can lead to misunderstandings, misdiagnosis, and a lack of trust between the nurse and patient (Kwame and Petrucka, 2020). As a nurse, it is crucial to understand the importance of good communication through various channels. I aim to continually improve my communication and relationship-building skills to ensure that patients receive the best care possible.
My action plan entails improving my communication skills and building effective and professional relationships in health and care. The first objective is to actively listen to the patient, ask questions, and clarify any misunderstandings. To further enhance my communication skills, I will work on reading the body language by observing non-verbal cues, such as gestures, eye contact, social space, and touch, to build rapport and trust with the patient. In addition, I plan to continually refresh my skills using the latest communication techniques and technologies to provide the best possible care to my patients. I will make an effort to build an effective and professional relationship with the patient by understanding their culture, background, and language preferences to build a stronger connection and provide better care.
Conclusion
Communication and effective professional relationships are crucial components of nursing assessments. A nurse should be well equipped with these skills to accurately and effectively collect patient information. The skills help to build rapport, promote trust and understanding, and improve the patient’s experience. By using John’s Model of Structured Reflection, I have reflected on my own experiences in conducting a nursing assessment. The reflection has informed my desire to continuously enhance my skills and capacity to interact with patients and provide the highest quality care possible.
References List
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