Therapeutic Communication is a important thing in delivering a care for patient, as well as part of nursing skills to achieves nursing goal as part of nursing care plan. Communication is defined as a process of generating and transmitting meaning and it includes verbal and non verbal communication. Successful communication includes appropriateness, efficiency, flexibility, and feedback.
Element of Communication:
- Sender: originator of information
- Message: information being transmitted
- Receiver: recipient of information
- Channel: mode of communication
- Feedback: return response
- Context: the setting of communication
There is five steps in therapeutic communication :
- Assessment, how to gather information
- Diagnose
- Planning and setting goals
- Implementation
- Evaluation
- Consider factors which influence effective verbal communication
- Use special communication aids as needed
- Use planned therapeutic communication techniques
- Avoid nontherapeutic techniques
Therapeutic Communication Techniques:
- Encouraging formulation of a plan of action
- Clarifying and validating
- Focusing and refocusing
- Give information and presenting reality
- Listening
- Maintain neutral responses
- Maintain silence
- Provide acknowledgment and feedback
- Provide nonverbal encouragement
- Restating
- Reflecting
- Share perceptions
- Use broad opening and open-ended question
- Summarizing
- Be defensive or challenging the client
- Ask the client “why”
- Change the subjects
- Give advice or approval or disapproval
- Make value judgment
- Make stereotypical comments
- Place the client’s feeling on hold
- Provide false reassurance
