Core Values Of Effective Communication In Nursing

The essential beliefs and principles that influence our behaviour, decisions, and actions are referred to as core values (Montgomery, 2023). Effective communication and taking accountability are two values that I feel are the most important to me and throughout nursing and something I feel I can bring to the profession. These two values are essential when it comes to delivering person centred care and forming relationships with patients and families as a nurse. Personal and professional relationships all contribute to patient-centred care. As a result, attempts to enhance patient-centred care should consider the patients and their families (Epstein and Street, 2011).

Communication is a two process of an individual expressing information and

Effective communication is critical during the numerous interactions that take place among healthcare professionals on an everyday basis. Staff must know how to speak effectively and work together in a multi-disciplinary team to ensure that appropriate information is passed on in a timely fashion. Patient safety is jeopardised if effective communication is lacking (Nadzam, 2009). One of the many ways healthcare professionals communicate with each other is record keeping. The Nursing and midwifery council code states within code 10.1 “complete documentation at the time of the occurrence or as soon as possible after it has occurred, recording if notes are written sometime after the event” (The Nursing and Midwifery Council, 2023) .Another way to remember this is if it hasn’t been written down it didn’t happen, I personally find this phrase very helpful as it reminds me of the importance of record keeping . When record keeping it is important, we use words and phrases our colleagues know and avoid using medical jargon. Code 7.1 in the NMC code states use terminology that your patients, coworkers, and the public will understand, by doing so will help miscommunication between healthcare professionals and patients (The Nursing and Midwifery Council, 2023). We should also ensure that all notes and records are in legible handwriting , dated and times and that we do not use

Although, there was multiple patients suffering from delirium on the ward, when I went to check on this patient, I felt like my communication was being challenged a lot more as I wanted to explain to them that what they thought was there, was just their imagination whilst trying not to make them agitated. This effected my communication skills as I felt like the patient knew I was not sure what to say when they said comments about imaginary things, as my body language was different, and I felt more tense due to the subject of conversation being unpredictable. I feel like this effected my relationship with the patient as I was not comfortable enough to deal with the situation on my own. I also felt that if there were two nurses present and one had more clinical experience that the patient would feel more comfortable and would find it easier to calm down if they were feeling overwhelmed. Communication is vital in nursing for establishing trust and comfort, and it is the foundation of the nurse-patient relationship (Dithole et al.,