Nurse patient interaction is all about effectively delivering health information and letting patients develop independence in self-care. It takes several variables in order to zero out factors that affect nurse-patient interaction. Communication usually happens within interventions and tasks, these variables in providers and patients may include but are not limited to some environmental and situational variables. There are several identified factors that build the nurse-patient structure in communication. Let us talk about the three most important structural factors.
Role Allocation
This is well described as responsibility division or a much more cliché phrase ‘working as a team’. Good interpersonal and intrapersonal communication skills are developed by time and by doing. A nurse has a mandatory skill of relaying information as effectively as possible. Teamwork if done effectively, can automatically affect the patient outcome. The other way around may increase co-morbidities. Health care is definitely a global demand, and demand that will never go out of need. In order to be effective in your craft in health care, the skill must be parallel to your ability to ensure effective communication within colleagues, therefore delivering better patient outcomes. The key term is ‘patient-centered group approach’.
Patient-centered teamwork can only be achieved when the team places the patients in the center of care. Regardless of differences between a health care team, a choir must sing a harmony. Attached to this, is the fact that the team shall not fall short in skill development and delivery. Expectations must be met and delivered. The role of the organization as a whole is to identify specific best practices by using evidence-based research. This data will help mold the brains and pave the way to better patient care. A TEAM is defined as an identified set of people more than one, who interacts with each other in a dynamic way, working in an interdependent manner adapting into one common developed goal.
In summary, role allocation is all about incorporating the idea of sharing responsibilities with a sense of accountability within a team. Shared responsibility with high-quality teamwork though should be a priority, this will, in turn, provide lesser to almost zero risks to patient care.
Language and Registers
So many Filipinos opt for going abroad because of the higher salary and better offers. One thing that these nurses have to get ready for is the language barrier that they have to endure. Even in our very own country, there are still instances when patients misunderstand or misinterpret intentions and instructions. According to a study, communication skills can actually be learned to a certain degree. But in one way or another, it must be integrated into a sociological standpoint. Meaning, communication should be regarded as unique in different statutes, environment, and location.
Rarely that one patient is looked after by just one nurse, it takes a team to make sure that everything is in place, and accurate. Interracial dynamic in a team may pose difficulties, but can actually be improved through continuous practice and adjustments. One of the most important factor to prevent errors in communication in an interracial setting is training, that is why a lot of countries opt for month-long training and exposure to newbies in order for them to adjust more and function effectively.
Nursing Setting
Teams are developed in setting in order to function well. There are 4 identified teams; these are:
Support Services and Administration – There task is typically indirect, these include executive leadership in a certain facility. It might be indirect, but this team typically has 24-hour accountability in the organization and the overall function of the facility.
Ancillary – these are the people that maintain the overall comfort of the facility, these are your cleaners and orderly staff.
Contingency Group/Team – This team typically originates in the emergency room. They are responsible for the timely response in the event of cardiac arrest including emergency responses during disasters.
Coordinators – This team is typically responsible for operational management. This may be composed of unit heads and supervisors. They also make sure that resources are managed well. Decision making is also a responsibility of the coordinating team. This team also includes infection control nurses and quality assurance managers.
Core team – this team is directly participating in the care of the patient. It consists of team leaders and their members. Each member has a specific task to be completed in a single shift. These are your nurses and medical professionals including pharmacists and assistants.
These teams work together in order to deliver efficient care, and communication between them is crucial. In order to make sure that each member carries accountability, there are values and principles that always go with the responsibility. These are honesty, creativity, humility, discipline, and curiosity. These values are a whole new topic for another article.