Question

What needs to be in place to enhance therapeutic communication at all levels of care?

Answer 1

In a healthcare setting, effective therapeutic communication is very cruicial for a quality care of patient. To enhance therapeutic communication at all levels of care the following things need to be at place -

i. Good situational awareness in nursing managers which means they should have a good knowledge about what is going around them and being aware of issue that are hindering the quality of care in care units. A nursing manager with situational awareness can effectively communicate the issue with the concerning authorities and administration.

ii. Practice of open communication among nurses, nursing managers and other staff memebers to promote a culture within the healthcare where people can openly share their thoughts, clarify their concerns and ask for any change if they feel it's required.

iii. Proper knowledge and use of medical and surgical terminologies among all the staff members as it can help in better understanding and description of a health condition and will be very effective in nurse to physician communication while describing the patient's case and condition to them.

iv. Better use of communication tools like educational programs based on communication will enhance effective teamwork and communication on a daily basis.

v. Proper use of patient handoff communication tool like SBAR and I-PASS to enhance clear and concise communication between nurses.

vi. And the last but the most important, having basic ethical qualities and virtues that enhance patient to nurse communication like empathy, consideration, politeness, respect, courtesy, honesty, completeness and respect for other cultures.