Communication is the activity of conveying meaningful information. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender’s intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast distances in time and space. Communication requires that the communicating parties share an area of communicative commonality. The communication process is complete once the receiver has understood the message of the sender. Different types of Communication are :– 1.
Verbal Communication Communication is at the heart of any relationship, be it familial, business, or friendly. While there has been significant advances in how we understand body language and other forms of communication, verbal communication continues to be the most important aspect of our interaction with other people. It’s important to understand both the benefits and shortcomings of this most basic communication. 2. Nonverbal Communication Nonverbal communication is usually understood as the process of communication through sending and receiving wordless (mostly visual) messages.
Messages can be communicated through gestures and touch , by body language or posture, by facial expression and eye contact. Meaning can also be communicated through object such as clothing,hairstyles or architecture. Speech contains nonverbal elements known as paralanguage, including voice quality, rate, pitch, volume, and speaking style, as well as prosodic features such as rhythm,intonation and stress. Likewise, written texts have nonverbal elements such as handwriting style, spatial arrangement of words, or the physical layout of a page.
Dance is also regarded as a form of nonverbal communication. 3. Informal Communication Informal communication includes all the various methods of relaying information or messages between people. It often is called “the grapevine” as messages weave back and forth and around people. There are none of the trappings of formal messages, such as company letterhead, planned meetings or specific introductions of guests. Everyone is relaxed and casual, eager to chat about many things, as there is no specific agenda to follow. This type of communication frequently is oral, and works easily for small groups.
The scope of the conversation may be broader than a formal presentation, and include topics that are diverse in nature, free flowing and loose rather than scripted carefully. Unfortunately, informal communication is subject to creating rumours and misinformation due to its loose nature and lack of substantiating evidence. Informal communication is used to help put people at ease. This can be seen in an interview situation where an interviewer such as a paralegal needs to make a little small talk to help get clients to relax, feel welcome and open up verbally.
The use of informal language is far more prevalent in society than the use of formal language. 4. Formal Communication Formal communication can be considered as communication efforts that are “dressed up” to fit customary rules and ceremony For example, in a written letter, the formal communication style will demand that the layout of the piece of written communication follow a specific format that includes the date, header, salutation, body of the letter, close, signature lines and any indicators of enclosures all placed neatly upon company letterhead or personal stationery.
By contrast, an informal piece of written communication can be as simple as a jotted note to a friend on a torn slip of paper Formal communications are mostly written, although they may now also include formal presentations that are on computer disk, video tape or DVDs, MP3 presentations and other similar electronic reproductions of written communications. Other forms of formal communications include newsletters, legal advisories, invitations, awards, and letters of congratulations.
Non-written formal communication devices are in-person communications in the forms of departmental meetings, telephone calls, conferences and special interviews. Some publications that are devoted to a special purpose, such as a company’s annual report, are formal communications. 5. Communication Through Body Language Communication is how human beings interact with the world that surrounds them. There are many forms of communication, some being more effective at conveying the intent or feelings of the individual expressing than others. Body language is a form of communication that is performed subconsciously.
It occurs almost constantly, and will almost always give the correct impression that a person has of someone else, the environment, or the situation at hand. Body language makes it easy to know if someone is nervous, scared, interested, or focused, among many other feelings that could be happening. On the lighter side of body language communication, it can be a very helpful tool in determining how interested another person is in you. When single people meet for the first time, reading the signs of body language can help you to determine if this person has any interest in you beyond friendship.
If on a date, the person leans towards you when you are speaking or has their arms at their sides with the front of their body facing towards you, that is a sign that signifies a true interest in the things you are saying. If, on the other hand, they have their arms crossed, are leaning back in their chair with their back turned towards you, and are avoiding contact, they probably are not interested. COMMUNICATION IN NURSING We know that communication is the transfer of information between or among people.
The practice of nursing utilizes constant communication between the nurse and the patient, the patient’s family, the nurse’s co-workers, supervisors, and many others. Communication in nursing can be a complicated process, and the possibility of sending or receiving incorrect messages frequently exists. It is essential that a nurse should know the key components of the communication process, how to improve the skills, and the potential problems that exist with errors in communication. Successful communication has three major components: a sender, a receiver, and a message.
In nursing, frequently has a great deal of information to send to others in a short period of time. To do this effectively, nurses need to know that there are factors which could influence how their message is interpreted. They must consider the setting in which the communication occurs, the past experiences and personal perceptions of both the sender and receiver, the timing of the message, etc. Breakdown in communication can cause negative outcomes. Nurse should know how important it is to give a thorough patient report to the oncoming nurse at shift change.
Nurse should know that the trust of patients and their families is an important part of providing effective nursing care. If they don’t trust , any communication that nurse attempts to send to them may be disregarded. Nurse can take steps to ensure that has their trust. They may seem simple and self-evident; however, in the busy practice they are not always followed. The first step towards effective communication is honesty. Don’t tell a patient that nurse is going to do something unless she mean it, and if she can’t follow through, explain why.
Promises, if made, must be kept. Other important factors are availability and responsiveness. Patients and families become impatient and sometimes angry when they feel that they are being ignored. Sometimes these feelings are not reasonable, but sometimes they are justifiable. If nurse encounter this type of complaint, she needs to take a look at the communication process, timing, etc. between the nurse and the patient. If it appears inadequate, take corrective action. It has been said that as much as eighty percent of nurse’s communication is non-verbal.
She needs to pay attention to her body language, eye contact, and tone of voice when addressing patients and families. This also is true when addressing co-workers, nursing supervisors, and virtually everyone else. Conflict among co-workers can impact patients, and sometimes can be prevented or corrected if she is aware of how her attitude may be interpreted. Also, cultural awareness can be an important part of the knowledge base that she needs , when communicating. Most importantly, we must appear to be empathetic with those in our care.
We are the face of nursing and the face of the facility to our patients and their visitors. We will encounter many people in our professional lives. They may not remember our names , but they will remember how we treated them during a difficult time in their lives. INTEGRATING THEORY OF COMMUNICATION TO CLINICAL PRACTICE From spiritual and artistic to practical and clinical, this outstanding resource takes a unique approach to presenting the basic concepts of therapeutic communication and their application in various clinical situations with both clients and colleagues.
It covers a wide array of topics, including being assertive, electronic communication, respect, humour, group communication, confrontation, and requesting support. The knowledge about effective communication in the service sector will enable the person to build relationships ,meeting challenges and building Confidence. IMPORTANCE OF NURSING THEORIES •Nursing theory aims to describe, predict and explain the phenomenon of nursing •It should provide the foundations of nursing practice, help to generate further knowledge and indicate in which direction nursing should develop in the future.
Theory is important because it helps a nurses to decide what they know and what they need to know. •It helps to distinguish what should form the basis of practice by describing nursing. The benefits of having a defined body of theory in nursing include better patient care, enhanced professional status for nurses, improved communication between nurses, and guidance for research and education. •The main exponent of nursing – caring – cannot be measured, it is vital to have the theory to analyze and explain what nurses do. As medicine tries to make a move towards adopting a more multidisciplinary approach to health care, nursing continues to strive to establish a unique body of knowledge. •This can be seen as an attempt by the nursing profession to maintain its professional boundaries. • HOW COMMUNICATION THEORY IS APPLICABLE IN NURSE’S DAY TO DAY CLINICAL PRACTICES ? Assist nurses to describe, explain and predict every day experiences. ?Serve to guide assessment , interventions, and evaluation of nursing care ?
Provide a rationale for collecting reliable and valid data about the health status of clients which are essential for effective decision making and implementation . ? Help to describe criteria to measure the quality of nursing care ? Help build a common nursing terminology to use in communicating with other health professionals. ? Ideas are developed and words are defined ? Enhance autonomy of nursing through defining its own independent functions 5 Is for effective communication skills practice (1) INTERACT with the patient; 2) Establish the INTENTION of the interaction; (3) Decide on the INTERVENTION to be used; (4) Assess the IMPACT of the intervention/s; (5) Evaluate the IMPLICATIONS of the subsequent information obtained and then act accordingly Nurses should try to interact with patients by using the full range of communication skills at their disposal, to help patients realise that practitioners are there to help as much as they possibly can, both physically and psychologically, in light of patients’ vulnerable state of health.
Simultaneously, however, nurses must always remember that they are responsible to, and not for, patients in their care. Patients must be given time and space to express any fears, anxieties, concerns or worries they may have. Therefore, patient expression can be facilitated by the very presence of nurses, and by nurses’ willingness to engage, interact and communicate. Nurses also need to decide on the most appropriate interventions.
These interventions may take physical or psychological form, depending on the overall aim and purpose of the interaction, for example: administering an injection; carrying out physical observations; assisting an elderly person with their activities of daily living; or reassuring an anxious patient using their communication skills. Nurses should then proceed to assess the impact of the selected interventions. Has the practitioner achieved what they set out to achieve? In other words, did the selected intervention or interventions work? If not, why not?
What could be done differently the next time to maximise the likelihood of a successful interaction? The final step is to evaluate the implications of the interaction for professionals and patients alike. For example, acquiring information from a patient during an assessment-type interview is one thing but what should nurses actually do with that information? Other members of the multidisciplinary team may need to be informed and be more specifically involved in patients’ care and treatment, contingent of course on the information received from patients.
CONCLUSION Humanity, respect and a people-focussed attitude are vital to good communication with patients for a Nurse. The goals of good communication are to avoid patient misunderstanding and uncertainty, improving management decisions by healthcare professionals and resulting in a more satisfied patient. Physicians and nurses should aim to achieve a shared understanding with patients, involve them in decision-making, and encourage them to accept responsibility. Greater patient satisfaction may improve concordance and so bring about better outcomes.