The Significance of Self-Awareness in Healthcare Workers

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Table of Contents
Introduction:...............................................................................................................................................2
Conclusion:..................................................................................................................................................6
References:.................................................................................................................................................7

Introduction:
Self-awareness is significant for health care worker as they need to control their affective,
behavioral and cognitive self in order to participate in therapeutic relationships more effectively.
It is a basic skill needed for reflective practice as a result being self-aware supports whole
process of individual being conscious of their beliefs, qualities, values, limitations and strength.
It is essential for healthcare worker to develop and understand good interpersonal skills and
therapeutic relationship with clients or patients and their family members. By using self-
awareness, they are capable to continuously learn to use themselves while interacting with
others. It is a significant tool to establish a therapeutic relationship with clients or patients for
therapeutic healing. Communication is a crucial skill of modern nursing, and there are several
ways range of communication process which is appropriate in healthcare settings that includes,
verbal, non-verbal, formal, informal, technology aided etc. Self-awareness helps healthcare
worker to enhance health delivery and improve communication skills as well (Dodge, 2017). It
allows them to select appropriate therapeutic intervention from wide range of options in order to
provide complete benefits to client or patients. It is an objective evaluation of the oneself and is
very essential components in the relationship of health care provider and patients. It also helps
clients improve their healing process, control anger, enhance gratitude towards other patients etc.
Self-awareness is a state of being aware of several aspects of self that involves behaviors,
feelings and traits. The concept of self is important in any medical alliance often for those clients
or patients who are psychologically distressed or physically sick. In health care, it is always
considered as the most essential and important aspect of health care professionals like nurses
(Symons, et al., 2009). It makes them more competent in provision of good quality health care
and provides greater satisfaction in health care and provides greater satisfaction in patient care.
Several literature shows that it is a transformative and dynamic process of change and self-
reflection (Haley, et al., 2017 ). Eventually it is the application of self-assessment to guide and
examine in a genuine way, that helps nurses and other health care worker to promote
interpersonal relationships with their clients or patients helping them in recovery process. Using
self-awareness in a healthy way is an initial step of taking care of themselves and becoming
resilient. Moreover, it leads to engage in healthy behaviors, leading to become better health care
worker to resulting to provide better patient care.
Self-awareness is a key factor for therapeutic communication skills. It is also used as a
communication tool by healthcare workers to help patients or client feel better. It is important for
health care worker to determine their behavior, values and attitude because they have to
constantly interact with patient or clients who have different and unique characteristics. While
providing holistic care to clients it is very crucial to understand the differences and similarities
between each individual (Stonehouse, 2010). So, it is important for them to know that how their
behavior, reaction and motive can affect others. Self-awareness process compels every medical
professional to evaluate their value positions as these prejudices and biases are not projected on
to patients or client, subsequently they don’t reject people who don’t have similar beliefs and
values. Thus, by using self-awareness effectively they must have good knowledge of patterns of
their personal response, limitations and strengths. For example: basic principle of psychiatric
nursing is to know yourself. In this case self-awareness is significant as psychological state of
nurse effects the way they analyses patient’s information. The process of self-examination or