Communication Skills Adult Health Nursing

The effective communication skill is vital in nursing so that errors can be avoided and the patients can be provided effective care up to their satisfaction to ensure their better health outcome (Riley, 2015). The communication can be verbal which means communication by using words, languages, etc or non-verbal in nature in which expressions, videos, pictures and others are used to converse. The Nursing and Midwifery Council (2018) informs that nurses are to establish communication with the patients verbally as well as non-verbally to understand their needs and demands regarding services to ensure them satisfaction (www.nmc.org.uk, 2015). In this activity, the key focus is on active listening and non-verbal communication skills of nurses to communicate with adult patients for understanding the way the two skills are going to impact on the relationship between nurses and patients.

The communication skill learned in the first trimester is carried out in the second trimester. In the first tutorial of this trimester, role play between nurses and patient is expressed and during it, the students are to self-assess their communication skills (Appendix 1). The communication skills are important in adult health nursing because it offers nurses improved ability to provide effective individualised care to the patients (Chisholm et al. 2018). This is because communication leads nurses to understand the needs and demands of the patients regarding their care which they are to fulfil individually for their better health outcome. Moreover, communication skill is essential in adult nursing as it helps them to execute effective health monitoring of the patients by understanding whether or not their care services are effective on them to create positive health improvement (Doherty et al. 2016). The active listening skill is essential in communication in adult nursing because it enhances the ability of the nurses for developing health information regarding adult patients can be passed on to physicians to ensure better care services for them (Kornhaber et al. 2016). This is because the physicians based on the information ask the nurses to change their care activities that suit to ensure better health outcome of the patent. The non-verbal communication is essential in adult nursing because it leads the nurses to understand the feeling and perception regarding services among the patients (Williams, Kemper & Hummert, 2016). Moreover, it leads nurses to communicate with adult patients who due to physical or medical condition are unable to verbally communicate.

In adult health nursing, the nurses under active listening skills require paying minute attention to the information conveyed by the adult patients (Frauenfelder, van Achterberg, & Müller‐Staub, 2018). This is needed to understand and gather vital information about the patient’s personal health which can be later used in developing quality care services for them by the nurses. The nurses under the active listening skill require allowing the adult patients speak to finish their points and do not interrupt them through counter-arguments (Pullen et al. 2015). This is because it may lead the patient to feel frustrated that their information is not valued and the nurses are not interested to listen to them. The SOLER communication model informs about the body language to be maintained for being an active listener. The model informs that an active listener requires to sit squarely with open posture and lean forward to the speaker along with maintaining eye contact with them (Currie, 2018). This is because such body languages make the listener develop strong relationship with the speaker by assuring their information is being properly heard. Thus, in adult health nursing, the nurses to actively listen to the adult patients need to follow the body languages mentioned in the SOLER communication model.

The non-verbal communication involves unspoken presuppositions and understanding along with facial expression, body language and others which is able to influence the conversation between individuals (Varndell, Fry & Elliott, 2017). In case of adult nursing, it is often seen that some adults are unable to verbally express them due to their medical or physical condition. In such situation, nurses by executing non-verbal communication are able to understand their needs and demands of services as well as is able to communicate them vital medical information. The nurses under non-verbal communication require using pictures, emojis, diagrams and others for communicating with patients who are unable to verbally inform their needs (Brand et al. 2016). The nurses require using sign language interpreter to understand as well as establish non-verbal communication with adult patients (McKee et al. 2015). This is because the sign language interpreter is able to make the nurses understand needs and expression as well as feeling regarding care services for the patients. The nurses under non-verbal communication are to use visual aids such as charts, graphs, video and others to inform and support adult patients regarding their care services to ensure their improved health.

The above discussion informs that communication is important in adult nursing to offer them effective health outcome. The active listening and non-verbal communication skills help the nurses to establish strong relation with the patients to ensure their improved health by meeting their needs and demands. The nurses are to avoiding interrupting, listen minutely and follow the SOLER communication model to achieve active listening skill. In order to support non-verbal communication, the nurses are to use visual aids, positive body language, sign languages and others in adult nursing.

Dig deeper into Communication In Healthcare Settings with our selection of articles.

References

• Brand, G., Miller, K., Saunders, R., Dugmore, H., & Etherton-Beer, C. (2016). Expanding the caring lens: nursing and medical students reflecting on images of older people. Gerontology & geriatrics education, 37(2), 167-184.
• Chisholm, L., Zimmerman, S., Rosemond, C., McConnell, E., Weiner, B. J., Lin, F. C., & Hanson, L. (2018). Nursing home staff perspectives on adoption of an innovation in goals of care communication. Geriatric Nursing, 39(2), 157-161.
• Currie, L. (2018). Adaptive interaction as a method of non-verbal communication in individuals with dementia. Practice Nursing, 29(4), 176-180.
• Doherty, C., Landry, H., Pate, B., & Reid, H. (2016). Impact of Communication Competency Training on Nursing Students’ Self-advocacy Skills. Nurse educator, 41(5), 252-255.
• Frauenfelder, F., van Achterberg, T., & Müller‐Staub, M. (2018). Documented Nursing Interventions in Inpatient Psychiatry. International journal of nursing knowledge, 29(1), 18-28.
• Kornhaber, R., Walsh, K., Duff, J., & Walker, K. (2016). Enhancing adult therapeutic interpersonal relationships in the acute health care setting: an integrative review. Journal of multidisciplinary healthcare, 9, 537.
• McKee, M. M., Paasche-Orlow, M. K., Winters, P. C., Fiscella, K., Zazove, P., Sen, A., & Pearson, T. (2015). Assessing health literacy in deaf american sign language users. Journal of health communication, 20(sup2), 92-100.
• Pullen, L., McGuire, S., Farmer, L., & Dodd, D. (2015). The relevance of spirituality to nursing practice and education. Mental Health Practice (2014+), 18(5), 14.
• Riley, J. B. (2015). Communication in nursing. Elsevier Health Sciences.
• Varndell, W., Fry, M., & Elliott, D. (2017). A systematic review of observational pain assessment instruments for use with nonverbal intubated critically ill adult patients in the emergency department: an assessment of their suitability and psychometric properties. Journal of clinical nursing, 26(1-2), 7-32.
• Williams, K., Kemper, S., & Hummert, M. L. (2016). Enhancing communication with older adults: overcoming elderspeak. Journal of psychosocial nursing and mental health services, 43(5), 12-16.
• www.nmc.org.uk 2015, Professional standards of practice and behaviour for nurses, midwives and nursing associates, Retrieved on 01 February 209, from: