Importance of Therapeutic Communication in Caring for Patients

This essay discusses the concept of therapeutic communication and its importance in caring for patients. It explores the goals and practices of therapeutic communication, including active listening, interpreting, consideration, and touch. The essay emphasizes the role of therapeutic communication in developing personal healing relationships, reducing anxiety, and improving patient satisfaction.

Running head: THERAPUTIC COMMUNICATION
Importance of therapeutic communication in caring for patients
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Introduction
Therapeutic communication is an interactive communication concerning the nurse and
patient through which the nurse concentrates on the patient’s precise prerequisites to inspire a
productive conversation. Nurses use therapeutic communication abilities to deliver first-hand
info, correct misinformation, reassure acceptance of patient’s reactions to health problems,
search selections for care, assist in choice, and ease patient well-being (Candlin & Candlin,
2016). The point of therapeutic communication is to afford a safe space for the patient to turn to
in terms of the disease acceptance, and to offer the info and emotive support that every patient
requires to achieve ultimate well-being and health. Healing communication is thus dissimilar to
public dialogue. This essay deliberates on the idea of therapeutic communication and its
significance in caring for patients. The importance of the use of healing communication to the
nurse and the patient will be outlined.
Therapeutic communication may help the nurse to realize various goals like evaluate the
patient’s cognizance of the condition (Candlin & Candlin, 2016). This is because it provides
information on the patient's views and emotional state regarding the disease, and ascertains the
most significant client apprehensions at that instant. To have operative healing communication
the nurse has to contemplate affinity, conviction, esteem, and understanding. Affinity entails
exceptional feelings in the course of a conversation on the part of both the client and the nurse-
centered on recognition, cordiality, approachability, a sense of conviction, and a lenient outlook.
Confidence is very vital to sustaining communication. If a patient lacks trust in the nurse, he/she
may not disclose info that may be essential and helpful in treating the patient and planning
nursing care for him/her.

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It is necessary for nurses to provide an environment of trustworthiness which obliges that
they have a sense of self-assurance (Cristobal, 2018). Empathy is a practice in which a person
can perceive past apparent behavior and sense precisely another one’s internal understanding at a
particular point in time. With compassion, nurses could correctly differentiate and comprehend
the implication and significance of the patient’s views and emotional state.
Therapeutic communication practices are handy implements for nurses when
communicating with their clients, and those practices comprise of active listening, interpreting,
consideration, and touch. Active listening is essential for effective communication; it is not
merely the act of hearing (Savanna, 2016). The nurse heeds keenly while attending to the client,
hearing what is being said and communicates back to the client that the nurse has received their
message. Active listening takes in all of the nurse’s senses. It takes an implausible quantity of
drive, concentration, and self-discipline as well as ascertaining and straining out obstructions that
may inhibit communication. Interpreting is a reaction tactic to active listening intended to aid the
client to clarify more on the content of a spoken message. Through rephrasing the nurse propels
reaction that lets the patient know whether their words were comprehended. If the connotation
has changed through restating communication might become useless.
Consideration is a method used during active listening re-directs a question to get a
reaction from the patient (Rae, 2016). Drilling a patient to respond to questions their level best
helps them to consent their thoughts and approaches concerning an imperative occurrence.
Touch is another important implement for communication. Contact may be used to soothe, ease,
and create affinity and a healing connection between nurses and patients. When a client is
admitted in the emergency room, a nurse might lack ample time for a conversation on the bed,

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however, the holding of a hand may communicate a lot more than words to the patient at such a
time.
Therapeutic communication functions as a treatment for individuals in emotional
instability. Effective communication with clients may assist in developing personal healing
affiliations, reduce anxiety, improve patient submission and lead to a definite understanding for
everyone involved. Through healing communication, nurses can collect info required for their
strategy of care (Lin, Lee, Chou, Liu, & Tang, 2017). Nurses have crucial accountability of
making correct and applicable clinical assessments. They are responsible for helping their clients
sustain and improve their well-being. Nurses have to think analytically to solve glitches and find
the paramount modes to meet patient’s prerequisites. Conveying sincere reverence for their
patients and communicating efficiently can help nurses in fostering a professional affiliation with
patients. Having healing communication abilities and the delivery of a caring alliance that eases
health and healing are supposed to be an essential aspect of current nursing practice.
Nurses should show respect for patients’ beliefs and sentiments as maximizing the
patients’ health position and easing the pain is a nursing objective (McFarland, Johnson Shen, &
Holcombe, 2017). Effective communication practices and interactive therapeutic development
helps nurses to inspire patients to express their emotional states and apprehensions and also
benefits the patient by easing their pain and making them at ease in a clinical setting. A person
does not typically exist minus a linkage of kinfolk, support system, and healthcare specialists.
Therapeutic communication highlights a complete assessment of an individual and their linkage
of persons who offer support (Shaw, Williams, & Perkhounkova, 2018). An individual’s
perception concerning their well-being and life is regarded through a lens put together from the
background of their involvements. Those experiences cannot be disregarded when

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communicating therapeutically. In the therapeutic rapport, the individual is acquiring the abilities
of communication with other persons in their life, preferably also refining those affiliations. It is
mortal nature to desire to deduce a particular part of oneself into communication; conversely, for
healing communication to transpire, it is vital to temper one’s stimulus. Therapeutic
communication involves upholding a severe cognizance of what is being said together with any
non-verbal hints (Shaw, Williams, & Perkhounkova, 2018). Communicating that one is open to
hearing what a client has to say while folding one’s arms generates misperception and
discrepancy that can ruin a healthy interaction. Nurses should be aware of their tone of voice and
any responses.
Conclusion
Therapeutic communication is one of the utmost valuable implements that nurses have to
use to create affinity and conviction. This implies that the nurses should let the clients feel
benign enough to share info with them. In this essay, the model of therapeutic communication
has been openly discussed, that it is significant in caring for patients in the current nursing
practice. Using healing communication practices to help with affiliation development, aids the
nurse to concentrate on the client’s concerns. It has been emphasized that communication is an
essential healing interactive practice. By using proper communication abilities, nurses may
cultivate and preserve a helping nurse-patient relationship.

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