Ineffective Communication Essay

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Communication involves relaying information from an individual to another through the use of verbal and nonverbal techniques. Many factors affect the effectiveness of information relay. It involves evaluating verbal aspects such as tone of voice, the emotional content being communicated, the timing and rapport of the interaction with patients, and nonverbal techniques such as facial expressions, time invested. It is necessary for productive and satisfactory work environment, improved patient outcomes, and settling conflicts. The purpose of this paper is to identify issues with ineffective communication and ways to improve proper communication throughout the a hospital’s interdisciplinary team and patients. Issue Ineffective communication …show more content…

When time is considered a negative factor when communicating with patients, it results in nursing staff desiring to communicate with family, sitter, or caregiver rather than directly with the patient (Hemsley et al., 2011). The use of proxy can cause the patient to feel unvalued and may result in poor patient outcomes.
Nurses are well aware of the time constraints that often impact not only the time they have to spend with individual patients, but also the quality of their documentation (Hemsley et al., 2012). Nurses often choose time with patients over proper documentation. When this occurs, there is a high risk that crucial information will not be relayed to staff on other shifts (Casey & Wallis, 2011). There needs to be understanding between nurses and managers about how information is relayed and recorded between all members of the health care …show more content…

Timing is key; nurses and other members of the interdisciplinary team have to be aware of the best times to communicate with a patient (O’Hagan et. al., 2014). This is best complimented when nurses have established great rapport with the patients and their families. Patients are much more accepting of timing when they are interrupted and issues that arose when they trust the nurse (O’Hagan et .al., 2014). An example is if a patient just died and the family has to go through certain rituals, however, nursing care has to be completed as well. If the nurse has rapport with the family, they are more accepting of these hospital policies especially when they have been communicated at an appropriate

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