Therapeutic Communication Techniques Flashcards
Encourages the patient to organize thoughts and put them into words and allows the patient time to think about the significance of events, thoughts, and feelings. Allowing the patient to break the [blank] often provides the nurse with important information about the patient’s foremost concerns.
Using Silence
Conveys an attitude of understanding and willingness to interact.
Accepting
Acknowledging and indicating awareness is better than complimenting, which reflects the nurse’s judgment.
Giving recognition
Willingness to spend time with the patient and show interest on an unconditional basis helps to increase the patient’s feelings of self-worth.
Offering self
Allow the patient to direct the focus of the interaction and emphasize the importance of the patient’s role in the communication process.
Giving broad openings
Offer the patient encouragement to continue with minimal input from the nurse.
Offering general leads
Encouraging the patient to identify the sequence of events and when they occurred in time facilitates organizing one’s thoughts about their experiences.
Placing the event in time or sequence
Verbalizing [blank] about a patient’s behavior or appearance encourages the patient to develop awareness of how they are perceived by others and promotes exploration of issues that may be problematic.
Making observations
Asking the patient to verbalize his or her [blank] facilitates the patient’s ability to develop awareness and understanding. For the patient experiencing hallucinations, it can facilitate both nurse’s and patient’s clarification about what the patient’s [blank] experiences are communicating.
Encouraging description of perceptions
Asking the patient to compare similarities and differences in ideas, experiences, or interpersonal relationships helps the patient recognize life experiences that tend to recur and those aspects of life that are changeable.
Encouraging comparison
Repeating the main idea of what the patient has said lets the patient know whether an expressed statement has been understood and gives him or her the chance to continue, or to clarify if necessary.
Restating
Questions and feelings are referred back to the patient so that the patient is empowered to actively engage in problem-solving rather than simply asking the nurse for advice.
Reflecting
Taking notice of a single idea or even a single word encourages specific discussion about a relevant issue and is especially helpful with patients who are moving rapidly from one thought to another. However, [blank] is very difficult for a patient with severe anxiety so in this case the nurse should not pursue [blank] until the anxiety level lessens.
Focusing
When the nurse hears the patient mention an issue or theme that seems relevant, the nurse asks the patient to [blank]. [Blank] facilitates the patient’s development of awareness and understanding about events, thoughts, and feelings. However, if the patient chooses not to disclose further information, the nurse should refrain from pushing or probing in an area that obviously creates discomfort.
Exploring
Striving to explain that which is vague or incomprehensible and searching for mutual understanding facilitates and increases understanding for both patient and nurse.
Seeking clarification and validation
When the patient has a misperception of the environment, the nurse defines reality by expressing his or her perception of the situation without challenging the patient’s perceptions.
Presenting reality
