Report: Professional Identity in Nursing and Therapeutic Relationships

This report, focusing on professional identity in nursing, explores the significance of therapeutic and professional relationships as a cornerstone of effective patient care. The student reflects on the importance of adhering to professional standards, demonstrating empathy, and establishing trust while maintaining appropriate boundaries. The report details the student's intent to apply communication skills, such as open-ended questions and active listening, during clinical placement to build therapeutic relationships and gather comprehensive patient information. It also emphasizes the need for respect, creating a positive environment, and making informed decisions. The report highlights the student's commitment to integrating these principles into their nursing practice to enhance patient outcomes and strengthen professional relationships.

Professional identity nursing
Student’s Name:
Student’s ID:
Subject:

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Table of Contents
Professional Nursing Standards.......................................................................................................2
References........................................................................................................................................4

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Professional Nursing Standards
Standard 2: Engages in therapeutic and professional relationships
A therapeutic relationship is determined to be a significant element in the nursing profession
(Wilson et al., 2018). The best possible care can never be provided without therapeutic
relationship. Towards the end of my clinical placement, I intend to carry out a basic health
assessment of an individual. The purpose of the health assessment is to make sure that I have
well-utilized communication skills such as open-ended questions and active listening to build a
therapeutic relationship with the person. This will help me in gaining more knowledge regarding
the current health situation of the person. I will refer to or take guidance from my clinical
facilitator if any issue arises or something happens to which I am unfamiliar with regarding a
patient's physical or emotional well-being.
For establishing a therapeutic relationship, it is significant for the nurse to enhance the ability to
present empathy towards the patient (Slatyer et al., 2016). During my clinical placement, I will
interact with the patients to understand their needs, expectations and feelings of the patients.
However, in most of the cases, I will avoid showing overly empathic response to the clients as it
may disrupt the health of the patient and create a negative impact on the clinical decision.
Respect is an aspect of treating every individual equally in terms of age, sexual orientation,
gender, beliefs, weight and colour. At the time of my clinical placement, I will put my efforts to
make the patients feel more comfortable by creating a less stressed and positive environment.
Giving respect and providing quality care will help me in developing a strong bond with the
clients.
Within a therapeutic relationship, developing trust needs demand and time that the practitioner
can appropriately manage the communication skills for ensuring the patients that they listen and
the practitioner is engaged in their care (Spence Laschinger, Zhu and Read, 2016). By following
this, I will be able to overcome the barriers to trust and can make informed decisions regarding
patient's care. Through this, I will develop a trusting relationship with the clients on a more
positive note.
In most cases, to develop effective nursing practice, it is important for a nurse to respect the
personal boundaries of the client and act as a professional instead of treating the patient as a

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friend (Harper, Maloney and Shinners, 2017). By considering this aspect, I will act like a
professional by ensuring an adequate level of commitment and motivation to my therapeutic
plan. I will also avoid favouring the opinion of the client based on the established guidelines as it
may negatively affect the health of a patient and lead to unsatisfactory results.
In order to comply with this particular standard, I will think from a nursing perspective and give
more focus towards understanding and dealing with the complex situations. This will help in
improving my long-term nursing practice as well as enhance my clinical journey by
strengthening the positive relationship with the patients.

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References
Harper, M.G., Maloney, P. and Shinners, J., 2017. Looking Back and Looking Forward Through
the Lens of the Nursing Professional Development: Scope and Standards of Practice. Journal for
nurses in professional development, 33(6), pp.329-332.
Slatyer, S., Coventry, L.L., Twigg, D. and Davis, S., 2016. Professional practice models for
nursing: A review of the literature and synthesis of key components. Journal of Nursing
Management, 24(2), pp.139-150.
Spence Laschinger, H.K., Zhu, J. and Read, E., 2016. New nurses’ perceptions of professional
practice behaviours, quality of care, job satisfaction and career retention. Journal of Nursing
Management, 24(5), pp.656-665.
Wilson, N.J., Lewis, P., Wiese, M., O'Reilly, K. and Jaques, H., 2018. Redeveloping the
professional practice standards for nursing people with intellectual disability (ID): mapping the
diversity of ID nursing practice. Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 31(4),
pp.585-585.