NR 534 week 5 Ineffective Communication
NR534 week 5 Ineffective Communication
Ineffective Communication
NR 534 week 5: Ineffective
... [Show More] Communication
Think of a situation in which you were a part of or witnessed ineffective communication between a nurse and a nursing leader or manager. What form of communication was used? What was the nature of the issue or situation? Describe the tone and pace of the interaction. What would have made this communication more effective?
Professor and class,
Patient leader rounding is a hospital wide initiative to enhance patient experience and improve communication. During these rounds, a patient and his wife were upset stating they did not know what the plan of care was or if the patient could eat. He had returned from a procedure less than two hours prior to the round and they stated that they had not seen a nurse. The nursing director immediately went to the nursing station and asked who the nurse was for the patient. She asked the secretary to find the nurse. The director then went back into the patient’s room.
As the day shift nurse and I entered the room for bedside shift report, the nursing director immediately restated what the patient and his wife had said and began to loudly reprimand the nurse for not following policy and completing hourly rounding. She stated the patient needed information and profusely apologized for the nurse not meeting his expectations. She then firmly told the nurse that the behavior would not be tolerated and any further complaints would result in disciplinary action. This entire exchange transpired in front of the patient and his wife.
My co-worker was horrified, as was I. She quietly maintained her composure and approached the patient asking if he remembered her helping him off the stretcher when he returned to his room and obtaining ice chips that he requested. Her ability not to become defensive changed the tone of the interaction. Obviously, he and his wife were shocked by the leader’s behavior and he said that he did remember someone coming in and helping him with his bed controls and described the color of the woman’s hair. He remembered the assistant. She had been in the room about forty minutes prior, based on his wife’s account. The patient stated he had medication for pain before returning to the room and may not have remembered the nurse. The wife then stated that she was not actually in the room when the patient returned, but had gone downstairs for a while with a family member.
The verbal and non-verbal communication from the nursing leader was highly ineffective. Work by Plonien (2015) discussed the challenges of leadership and outlined the responsibility leaders have in inspiring and motivating their team, which is largely dependent on communication. This interaction was neither of these. It was counterproductive to improving engagement and created mis-trust between the nurse and leader. The leader was loud, displayed an angry tone, did not remain calm, and did not show any respect for the nurse. To improve this communication, the nursing director could have calmly stated that the patient did not remember the nurse being in the room and allow the nurse time to respond. Another approach would have been pulling the nurse aside, discussing the concerns away from the patient’s room, coming to a joint decision, and going back to the room to discuss and gather feedback. Mutual respect is imperative to effective communication. Gathering all the facts before making assumptions is extremely important, especially when in a leadership role.
Thanks,
Angela
Reference
Plonien, C. (2015). Using personality indicators to enhance nurse leader communication. AORN Journal, 102(1), 74-80. doi:10.1016/j.aorn.2015.05.001 [Show Less]