What are the 5 keys characteristics that we need in order to have a therapeutic communication?

1. Career development
2. Therapeutic Communication: What It is and How To Use It

By Indeed Editorial Team

Updated September 8, 2021 | Published February 25, 2020

Updated September 8, 2021

Published February 25, 2020

Nurses have the complex job of providing health care while communicating effectively with patients. Because communication is such a vital part of this career path, nurses should consider using therapeutic communication techniques to provide optimal care. In this article, we explain what therapeutic communication is, its benefits and how to develop your skills to use therapeutic communication successfully.

What is therapeutic communication?

Therapeutic communication is an in-person communication technique that provides exceptional physical and emotional care to a patient. Professionals can use therapeutic communication to establish trust and rapport with patients. Often, nurses must ease the worries and concerns of patients before they can begin providing health care. Therapeutic communication allows nurses to address patient concerns and provide them with emotional support and valuable health information. This positive nurse-patient relationship may make the patient more likely to proceed with the prescribed health plan.

If the patient is non-verbal, the nurse still needs to find a way to communicate. Therapeutic communication provides many different techniques to support patients with varying needs. Communication is an active process. Nurses must choose carefully how to respond to patients' questions and answers in a way that eases tensions and gathers as much useful information for the medical team as possible.

Related: Nonverbal Communication Skills: Definition and Examples

Benefits of therapeutic communication

Therapeutic communication can greatly improve the relationship between patients and their health care providers. Patients tend to feel empowered when they have the time and space to verbalize their concerns and worries to a medical professional. Strong therapeutic communication can give nurses the feeling that they are actively helping a patient feel better, and patients feel that someone understands and cares about them.

Related: 4 Levels of Conflict and Tips for Managing Them

How to use therapeutic communication

Here are some steps to develop your therapeutic communication skills:

1. Read body cues

Watch the nonverbal cues your patient shares. A smile and eye contact might show that your patient understands what you are saying.

2. Address emotions first

Meet patients' emotional needs before beginning any health education. Make sure your patient is comfortable and calm before discussing their medical care.

3. Make time

Make sure you are giving yourself enough time with patients to engage in therapeutic communication and build rapport. While at first, it may feel that conversation is cutting into your actual nursing time, the relationships you build will make it easier to provide health care later on.

4. Encourage communication

Give your patient the time and space to communicate their feelings and needs to you. Try not to make assumptions or guess what your patient is thinking. Instead, ask follow-up questions and summarize what was said to make sure everyone understands.

5. Use active listening

Listen closely to what your patients have to say, process their words carefully, and empathize with them. Provide nonverbal feedback like nodding your head or smiling.

6. Practice silence

Give your patient time to respond to a question or expand on a previous statement. Silence can show the patient that you want to hear more and are giving them the space to share.

7. Focus

Patients may want to converse about things unrelated to their health care. While this can help build rapport, it can also derail productive conversations about health care. Gently guide your patient back to the topic of conversation if needed.

8. Ask open-ended questions

These questions require more than a simple yes or no answer. Open-ended questions allow patients to share a nuanced view of their pain or illness. You can focus your open-ended questions in a way that gets you the information you need.

9. Clarify

The goal of clarification is to make sure you understand the patient without bias or self-projection. Here are several methods you can use:

• Exploring: Gently ask your patient follow-up questions if you need more information. Do not probe. Try a different technique if it is clear your patient is uncomfortable.

• Paraphrasing: Take what your patient said and put it in your own words. Ask patients if your paraphrasing accurately reflects what they said.

• Restating: In contrast to paraphrasing where you put patients' thoughts into your own words, restating is saying back to patients exactly what they said to you.

• Reflection: This technique mirrors what you think your patients' feelings are back to them. Instead of paraphrasing or restating what the patient said, share what you think the patient is feeling.

10. Provide a lead

You might ask a patient a specific, open-ended question in the pursuit of information. This is a way to gather a particular piece of information while putting the patient at ease.

11. Summarize

After a discussion, you can summarize the main points to make sure the patient understands all that was said. This is a very useful tool to make sure patients are fully informed about their health care.

12. Recognize, acknowledge and accept

It is vital that patients feel respected and understood. Verbal and nonverbal acknowledgment of their feelings empowers patients and assists in building positive relationships.

13. Offer yourself. In caring for patients, it is usually appropriate to show that you are also human. Demonstrate empathy, sympathy or share a personal anecdote (if you are comfortable doing so) to show your patients that you care about them, not just as a nurse, but also as a fellow human being.

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Definitions of nursing student-patient therapeutic communication