Therapeutic Communication in Nursing

This article discusses therapeutic communication in nursing, its techniques, analysis of situations and strategies for better patient care. It covers examples of therapeutic communication, analysis of situations such as diabetes, hypoglycemia, pancreatitis, and pneumonia, and strategies such as respect, empathy, and developing trust.

Running Head: THERAPEUTIC COMMUNICATION 0
Therapeutic Communication in Nursing
Student Details

THERAPEUTIC COMMUNICATION 1
Table of Contents
Answer 1. Therapeutic communication.................................................................................................2
Answer 2. Analysis of situations...........................................................................................................3
Answer 3. Strategies..............................................................................................................................5
References.............................................................................................................................................7

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Answer 1. Therapeutic communication
Therapeutic communication is defined as the process by which a nurse consciously
guides the patient or helps them to achieve better understandings by using the verbal or non-
verbal communication. The therapeutic communication includes the use of strategies which
motivate the patient to share their feelings and ideas. Therapeutic communications consist of
two complex words where each of them has a different meaning. Therapeutic means the
science and the art of healing or applying a treatment and communication means the social
interaction by exchanging messages or ideas among the people.
Therapeutic communication includes the transfer of the information on to different
levels that are verbal and nonverbal. Verbal communication includes the use of verbal
language and non-verbal communication involves verbal content like eye contact, body
language, facial expression and tone of voice. Therapeutic communication includes the
communication between the nurses and the patients for the wellbeing of that diseased person.
Communication is required to build a good relationship between the nurses and the patients
(Sherko, Sotir, & Lika, 2013)
Example 1
A patient who lost a business deal and all of his or her all profits complain about the
rising blood pressure. A nurse should clear the situation and asks for additional information
by using verbal therapeutic communication.
Example 2
A patient who is semiconscious and not able to speak can be assisted with therapeutic
communication to collect the health-related information. In this condition the patient can be

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asked to move their head, eye or hands to answer the question related to their health
condition.
Answer 2. Analysis of situations
A)
As mentioned is the case scenario the patient is suffering from type one diabetes
mellitus and hypoglycaemia. She also has some medical complications such as nausea and
vomiting. In this case, the primary care is provided by the nurses to the patient includes
effective therapeutic communications. Types of therapeutic communication techniques can be
used in this scenario are expression, clarification, and validation. The expression techniques
include use of silence therapeutically, reflective listening, voicing interest, asking questions,
acknowledgement and knowledge voicing, repeating the previous words which are used by
the diseased person, use of descriptive phrases etc. clarification helps to clarify the
observation provided by the patient such as asking for clear uncommon terms and
encouraging the comparisons. Validation is helpful to establish a common understanding of
what is expressed by the patient such as repeating the messages of the diseased person, ask
the pardon to repeat the words and summarizing the whole interaction content (Damasceno,
Zanetti, Carvalho, Teixeira, Araújo, & Alencar, 2012).
Therapeutic communication is also beneficial in case of Hypoglycaemia. According to
the American Diabetes Association (2018), hypoglycaemia is the medical condition which
occurs when the level of blood glucose decrease from the normal range (3.9 mmol/L).
Symptoms of hypoglycemia include headache, blurred vision, confused or disoriented, and
unconsciousness in severe cases (National Institute of diabetes and digestive and kidney
diseases, 2016). Long-term hypoglycemia is also associated with psychological conditions
such as disturbed mood, worrying and fear of hypoglycaemia (Kedia, 2011). In this case,

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where the patient is suffering from the long-term hypoglycemia may be facing mood. The
person can be handled politely and encourage them for taking enough carbohydrate and
water. The nurse can use touch and silence when appropriate. Both verbal and nonverbal
communication can be used to motivate the patient for their health recovery.
B)
Pancreatitis is associated with the high intake of alcohol. In this condition, the patient
diagnosed with inflammation in the pancreas which caused when the digestive enzymes start
affecting the pancreas itself. Pancreatitis is of two types acute and chronic. Acute pancreatitis
can be caused by gallstones and usually occurs suddenly and goes away in some days.
Symptoms associated with this disorder are the upper abdominal pain, vomiting, and nausea.
The chronic form of this disease cannot be healed or improved. With the time it gets worse
and results in permanent damage to the organ. Mostly it is caused by heavy alcohol
consumption. The other associated risk factors are cystic fibrosis, inherited diseases, high
calcium and fat level in blood, autoimmune conditions and some medicines (Medline Plus,
2016).
The person who is suffering from the alcohol addiction problem may be having trust
issues with health providers. They think that the health professional may be judging him
negatively. In this case, the nurses need to develop trust and believe in a patient. Some of the
therapeutic techniques might help in this scenario such as empathy, respect, trust, and
openness. These interventions allow the nurses to better understand the person's situation and
to change the perception of the addicts about the nurse that he or she is really trying to help
him and not to judge him (DARA Thailand, 2018). The patient with pancreatitis may have
difficulty to remember the precautions and instructions. The good communication between
the patient and the nurse might help the patient with nutritional changes that are required to
overcome the situation. Some of the nutrients that can be suggested beneficial in this

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condition are antioxidants (Forsmark, 2013), vitamins B, iron, and yogurt rich in bacteria
(Diethealthclub, 2014)
C)
Pneumonia is the infection of one or both the lungs caused by the bacteria. The
symptoms of this disorder include symptoms such as cough, fever, trouble in breathing and
chills. The risk factors associated with the pneumonia are age, lung infection and weak
immune system. The people older than 60 years kids less than five years old likely to develop
this disease (National Heart, lung, and blood institute, 2017). The patients in the given case
study have migrated from other country and have limited English. The person who migrated
to new places generally has trust issues and lack of knowledge. They may feel hesitation in
discussing the condition with unknown people. In this situation the nurses may help the
patient by using the good therapeutic communication such as providing information that a
patient needs to know, listening to the person carefully and explain everything to them in an
easy way as the patient has limited English. The patient is only six years old and might be
feeling homesickness so the nurse should behave politely and in a way that the child can trust
and cooperate in the treatment. The family of the patient can be involved in the treatment
when it is necessary. This may help to improve the trust between nurse and the patient’s
family and reduce the negative emotions related to their health.
Answer 3. Strategies
1. Respect
Respect is the fundamental factor which contributes to the mutual understanding
between the nurse and the patient, results and the satisfaction among the patient. Respecting a
patient demonstrates that the nurse values every aspect related to the person. Respect can be

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conveyed by active listening, giving the patient privacy, being honestly related to the length
of stay.
2. Empathy
Empathy is basically the direct, accurate and clear understanding of the emotions of the
patient and expressing the understanding to the person. As a nurse, it is important to
understand that the patient needs assistance when feels disconnected and vulnerable. The
individual needs to know that the registered nurse really wants to understand about their past
experience. The demonstrations of care and understanding may increase the ability of the
patient to provide any information. It also encourages commitment and engagement of both
the parties in the intervention process.
3. Developing Trust
The expression of empathy produces the positive emotions that help to develop trust
between the patient and a registered nurse. The combination of respect, trust and empathy are
the foundations for health goal already set for the patient (Toole, 2016).

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References
Damasceno, M. M. C., Zanetti, M. L., Carvalho, E. C. D., Teixeira, C. R. D. S., Araújo, M. F.
M. D., & Alencar, A. M. P. G. (2012). Therapeutic communication between health
workers and patients concerning diabetes mellitus care. Revista Latino-Americana de
enfermagem, 20(4), 685-692.
DARA Thailand (2018). Therapeutic relationship. Retrieved from:
http://alcoholrehab.com/addiction-recovery/therapeutic-relationships/
Diethealthclub (2014). Chronic Pancreatitis diet plan, restrictions. Retrieved from:
http://www.diethealthclub.com/health-issues-and-diet/chronic-pancreatitis/chronic-
pancreatitis-diet.html
Forsmark, C. E. (2013). Management of chronic pancreatitis. Gastroenterology, 144(6),
1282-1291.
Kedia, N. (2011). Treatment of severe diabetic hypoglycemia with glucagon: an underutilized
therapeutic approach. Diabetes, metabolic syndrome and obesity: targets and
therapy, 4, 337.
Medline Plus (2016). Pancreatitis. Retrieved from: https://medlineplus.gov/pancreatitis.html
National Heart, lung, and blood institute (2017). Pneumonia. Retrieved from:
https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health-topics/pneumonia
National Institute of diabetes and digestive and kidney diseases (2016). Low blood glucose
(hypoglycemia) what is hypoglycemia. Retrieved from:
https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/diabetes/overview/preventing-problems/
low-blood-glucose-hypoglycemia

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Sherko, E., Sotiri, E., & Lika, E. (2013). Therapeutic communication. JAHR, 4(7), 457-466.
Toole, G. O. (2016). Communication- eBook: core interpersonal skills for health
professional. (3rd ed.). Australia: Elsevier Health Sciences.