Communication, at face value, is necessary in order to preserve patient safety; it’s also equally as important in improving patient outcomes. (usc.edu, 2023) I can specifically recall a time when I cared for a patient who was newly diagnosed with congestive heart failure (CHF). The patient, a 37 year old male, was devastated and to say they were overwhelmed with emotions. Understandably so, I knew that I had to help this patient realizes that this was not necessarily a death sentence. Of course I empathize for the patient, and I knew that I had to employ some key communications strategies in order to truly help this patient. The first communication strategy I used was hourly rounding. “Hourly rounding, as the name suggests, involves completing a visit to each patient’s room or bedside once an hour to check they are OK and to see if they need anything.” (Alder, 2023) In addition to this, I utilized the SBAR communication format when communicating with the providers on behalf of the patient. “SBAR is a tool that is used for structured communication to ensure that information is transferred accurately between two people, such as during a shift transfer for example.” (Alder, 2023) Continuing, these two communication strategies weren’t enough to help this patient out though – not in the way that they needed. I knew that people process things differently. So, I wanted the patient to be educated and informed about their new diagnosis of CHF; and, with that, I recruited the use of the teach-back method. “This approach helps the patient take the information on board and lets the nurse know if the patient has understood what has been said to them.” (Alder, 2023) In conclusion, it took a few days for the patient to process everything; and, by the time they discharged, the patient gave me a hug, thanked me, and asked me if we could be friends on Facebook.
Alder, S. (2023). Communication Tools in Nursing. The HIPPA Journal. https://www.hipaajournal.com/communication-tools-in-nursing/
usc.edu (Ed.). (2023). The Importance of Communication in Health Care and Tips to Improve. University of Southern California (USC). https://communicationmgmt.usc.edu/blog/importance-of-communication-in-health-care