Therapeutic communication techniques – This book covers the entire syllabus of “Psychiatric Nursing” prescribed by the Universities of Bangladesh- for Basic and diploma nursing students. We tried to accommodate the latest information and topics. This book is an examination-friendly setup according to the teachers’ lectures and examination questions.
At the end of the book previous university questions are given. We hope in touch with the book students’ knowledge will be upgraded and flourish. The unique way of presentation may make your reading of the book a pleasurable experience.
Therapeutic communication techniques
Techniques of therapeutic communication:
1. Listening: Active process of receiving the information. Complete attention of the nurse is required. Active listening shows respect towards the person who is speaking and powerful reinforces the relationships, allows the client to talk more without any inhibitions or bias
2. Broad Opening; Motivates the chent to define the problem or issue select the topic for discussion and indicate that the nurse is interested towards the client and encourages the chent to talk. Communicates a desire to begin a meaningful interaction.
3. Social Responding or Social Interaction: First the nurse engages the chert in superficial conversation and no hidden intention for personal disclosures. It helps the chent to feel more comfortable, ease and safe, whereby he can give spontaneous, automatic responses.
4. Asking Relevant Questions: It is a direct method of getting specific, clear information from the chent. Ask the relevant questions in a logical, sequential manner. Questioning is more effective when they are related to the client or subject being discussed in normal sociocultural context. To get in depth of information or elaborate answer open ended questions can be
5. Sharing Perceptions: Nurse has to share the client’s thoughts and perceptions. Nurse allows the client and tries to share the client’s thoughts and ideas, clarifies the doubts if client has anything.
6. Theme identification: Identifying the underlying issues or problems experienced by the client, once the client’s problems were identified, it is easy to decide which feelings and thoughts have to be responded and continued.
7. Focusing: Concentrate for a particular point. It eliminates vagueness in communication by limiting the area of discussion. Nurse has to focus on particular issue, otherwise the client continues to use vague description. Nurses have to expand discussion on a topic of importance. Client becomes more specific and tries to focus on reality.
8. Clarification: The client’s verbalization may not be always clear as he is disturbed or confused or feeling very deeply for their illness.
9. Pinpointing: Nurses pays attention to certain consistent statements made by the client; pinpoints differences what the client talks and what he does.
10. Restating: Nurse repeats to the client, the main thought what he has expressed, indícating that nurse is hastening and focusing to the point what client wants to convey.
11. Suggesting: Nurse will suggest alternative ideas. New coping strategies, useful communication techniques to increase the client’s choices which he can use in day-to-day life activities.
12. Offering General Leads: Encourages the client to communicate elaborately the nurse suggest or gives certain leads so that the client will elaborate it.
13. Summarizing: Nurses will highlight the main theme of what has been discussed; specific important things only taken into consideration. It helps the client to focus the issue under the discussion.
[Ref: KP Neeraja/1″/Vol-1/207-2091