Exploring Communication Strategies and Barriers in Nursing Practice

This essay discusses effective communication strategies in nursing, focusing on a scenario with a client named Catherine who has experienced a traumatic event. It emphasizes the importance of using a transactional model of communication, building rapport through empathy and trust, and employing both verbal and non-verbal communication techniques. The essay also identifies potential barriers to communication, such as socio-cultural differences, emotional barriers, and the use of jargon, and suggests methods to overcome these challenges. Furthermore, it touches on the necessity of interprofessional collaboration and ethical considerations in sharing client information. The conclusion reinforces the significance of tailored communication strategies and cultural sensitivity to enhance the nurse-patient relationship and improve healthcare outcomes. Desklib provides access to this and other solved assignments.

Running Head: COMMUNICATION IN NURSING 1
COMMUNICATION IN NURSING
Name
Institutional Affiliation

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Introduction
A healthcare practitioner dealing with different types of clients requires the application of
specific strategies. The use of professional skills in the communication process is particularly
important in that it facilitates the sufficient resolution of challenges affecting an individual by
improving information sharing between the healthcare provider and the client. Catherine is a
client whose traumatizing experience involving her friend has significantly affected her. As a
result of an incident where a stove burned her friend, the sight of a stove seems to scare her. She
seems to be suffering from a post-traumatic stress syndrome. Considering her experience,
cultural background and my professional practice communicating Catherine as a counselor
would require me to use my professional skills not only to communicate and help relieve her
stress but also solve any emerging communication challenges in the counseling process. Dealing
with Catherine’s issue effectively requires both the use of effective communication skills and
collaborative therapy.
The model of communication to be used in communicating with the client. With an
understanding of the importance of the communication model adopted in the success of the
counseling exercise, I would assume a transactional model of communicating with the client.
Transaction model of communication refers to two-way communication between the sender and
receiver of information. Under this model, each party to the conversation alternatively sends and
receives information. The interaction with my client would be interpersonal which makes
transaction model the most effective for this setting. The effectiveness of this model is based on

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the fact that the communication process would require the input of both the sender and the
receiver interchangeably (Blais, Hayes, Kozier & Erb, 2015). This model would allow seeking
clarifications and getting feedback from my client. It would also let us keep the conversation
alive.
Developing rapport with the client. The effectiveness of the communication process
would also be determined by the existing rapport between me as and my client. It would
influence the extent to which she would be willing to share with me about her experiences. As s
professional I understand that it is essential to build trust and establish good communication with
my clients. Through rapport building, the outcome of the communication process would be
positive and satisfactory to my client. I would, therefore, use the following strategies to build
rapport with my clients. First I would seek to know more about my client. This would involve
talking about her life interests, hobbies, family, friends as a way of taking her mind off of the
issue that she is dealing with. This would not only allow us to find common areas of interest, but
it would also shift her mind to happier things she has experienced (O'hagan et al., 2014).
Secondly, I would show empathy for the situation that she is currently facing. By empathizing
with her, I would indicate that I do care and feel for her. Thirdly I would do that by displaying a
high level of confidence. By being confident, I would reassure my client that I am entirely in
control of the situation which would make her less worried about any adverse outcome. I would
use effective communication from the start to the end of the process. Through effective
communication with my client, I would establish a friendship bond and trust with my client.
Effective communication would include listening to all the views, assumption and concerns for
my client before arriving at any conclusion. Finally, I would also build rapport by showing

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respect to my client concerning her level of intelligence, perceptions, and opinions which might
be different from mine.
Communication strategies. The blueprint for transmitting information between the sender
and the receiver is known as a communication strategy. The choice of a communication strategy
is influenced by the desired outcome of a communication process. The commonly used
communication strategies are verbal, non-verbal and visual communication strategies. The three
are effectively used in various situations. Because of the nature of the communication with
Catherine, I would use both verbal communication and non-verbal communication strategies
because I feel they would be the most effective. The reasons why I would choose non-verbal is
because it would allow me to obtain feedback with much ease, save time and would provide an
opportunity for me to fully understand my client and seek any clarifications on unclear areas.
The flexibility associated with verbal communication would also be one of the reasons (Riley,
2015). On the other hand, non-verbal communication would complement the verbal
communication to make the communication process more efficient.
Implementation of the communication strategies. I would implement verbal
communication orally by asking questions regarding her experiences, seeking clarifications,
explaining the reasons for the experience and explaining to her how she can deal with the
situation on a one-on-one setup. I would implement non-verbal strategy through the use of non-
verbal cues to drive home my point. These would include maintaining eye contact with my client
as well as the use of facial expressions and gestures.

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Barriers to effective communication. Anything that affects the transmission of a message
between a sender and recipient distorts the meaning of a message is referred to as a barrier to
effective communication. Due to the fact that the client comes from a different cultural
background, it is evident that socio-cultural barriers are some of the factors that will affect the
communication process between my client and I. For example, these barriers might include
taboos and emotional barriers such that the client might find it hard expressing her emotions on
specific topics in the course of the conversation (Schuster, Schuster & Nykolyn, 2010). The
effectiveness of the communication process might also be affected by cultural differences. These
might be witnessed through differences in the expression of emotions and differences in social
interaction norms for the indigenous. Additionally, they may also include non-verbal
communication physical barriers such as the inability to, see and understand body language and
non-verbal cues. These are likely to make the communication process less effective. The use of
jargons related to my field could also be another barrier to effective communication between my
client and me. It could also be as a result of different accents and language differences. Finally,
cultural differences might also lead to prejudices and expectations, likely to result in stereotyping
and incorrect assumptions. Such are a significant hindrance to effective communication.
Psychological barriers such s the emotional state of the client might also be a barrier to effective
communication(Schuster, Schuster & Nykolyn, 2010).
Overcoming Communication barriers. These communication barriers can be overcome
through the use of simple language void of professional jargons, learning about other cultures to
identify possible points of misunderstandings and to understand what different cultures entail and
the associated cultural differences (Sheldon,2008). They can also be overcome by learning the

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about the best strategies for accommodating cultural differences, seeking to understand my client
before the counseling process to ensure that the communication meets her needs.
Interprofessional practice. Effective therapy for my client would require the input of
other professionals.I would, therefore, communicate with psychotherapists to help in the
examination of Catherine's subconscious mind, psychiatric nurse, mental health worker, a
Psychologist among others. I would mainly discuss details regarding the issue affecting my client
without going into much personal information. For example, I would discuss matters to do with
her experiences before the development of her current mental disorder, her current behavioral
changes, their magnitude and impact on her social life. I would also discuss the incidence that led
to the development of her current condition. Some of the ethical considerations include; ensuring
that the communications are in the best interest of my client, preserving the confidentiality of the
information about the client, publishing oral or written information about a client only with their
consent, respecting the dignity and rights of my client and ensuring that the sharing of
information does not harm the client (Webb,2011).
Conclusion
In conclusion, the communication process with Catherine would be more appropriate if
carried out through the transactional communication model. It would also require the
establishment of rapport between my client and me through the use of effective communication
skills, touching on my client’s personal life and respecting divergent opinions and views. To
make the communication process more effective, I would also apply both verbal and non-verbal
communication strategies. These two would be the most effective because of the nature of the

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communication involved. The communication process is also likely to be affected by
communication barriers such as emotional barriers, cultural differences, the use of jargons,
stereotypes among others. These challenges can be solved through the use of simple language,
understanding of the existing cultural differences adopting accommodative strategies for
different cultural values and assumptions as well as seeking to understand my client to identify
communication strategies that suit her.

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References
Blais, K., Hayes, J. S., Kozier, B., & Erb, G. L. (2015). Professional nursing practice: Concepts
and perspectives (p. 530). NJ: Prentice Hall.
O'hagan, S., Manias, E., Elder, C., Pill, J., Woodward‐Kron, R., McNamara, T., ... & McColl, G.
(2014). What counts as effective communication in nursing? Evidence from nurse
educators' and clinicians' feedback on nurse interactions with simulated patients. Journal
of advanced nursing, 70(6), 1344-1355.
Riley, J. B. (2015). Communication in nursing. Elsevier Health Sciences.
Sheldon, L. K. (2008). Communication for Nurses: Talking with Patients. 2nd ed. Jones and
Bartlett.
Schuster, C. R., Schuster, P., & Nykolyn, L. (2010). Communication for Nurses: How to Prevent
Harmful Events and Promote Patient Safety. Philadelphia: F.A. Davis Co.
Webb, L. (2011). Nursing: Communication skills in practice. Oxford: Oxford University Press.