Question 1
Types of Nonverbal Communication
There are different ways through which individuals can communicate nonverbally. Gestures, physical distance/personal space, facial expressions, and posture are examples of non-verbal communication techniques (Burgoon & Guerrero, 2013). Gestures can be touching behaviors, agreed-on signs, or signs that accompany verbal communication (Burgoon & Guerrero, 2013). Also known as proxemics, maintaining personal space and physical distance when communicating plays a critical role in passing a message. Proxemics also determines the settings and environment under which people communicate, for example, public, social, personal, or intimate spaces (Burgoon & Guerrero, 2013).
Facial expressions can be used to communicate happiness, sadness, disappointment, fear, anger, disgust, frustrations, among other feelings (Burgoon & Guerrero, 2013). Accompanying a facial expression with verbal communication puts emphasis on the message being passed. Posture is another common form of nonverbal communication, and it is characterized by the pose or position that a person adopts when communicating, for example, standing and sitting (Burgoon & Guerrero, 2013). Other gestures that accompany posture include the position of the hands and the legs.
Importance of Congruence between Verbal and Nonverbal Communication
It is imperative that the communicator aligns verbal and nonverbal communication to avoid miscommunication. Kourkouta and Papathanasiou (2014) argues that congruence is particularly important during stressful situations, where it might be difficult to identify changes in communication. For example, the nurse assistant communicates often with the supervisor, but under different circumstances. Accompanying the right nonverbal communication techniques with spoken word will enhance delivery of the message and avert the risk of false impression.
Communicating with NA of Different Gender
It is important to consider the gender of an individual when communicating as it aids selection of the right environment or setting, posture, and physical distance. For example, selecting a social place instead of the office to communicate with a person of the opposite gender may negatively affect the expected outcomes. Similarly, adopting certain postures and personal spaces may convey the wrong message to the recipient.
Question 2
Communication Strategies to Redirect Dominance of Communication by One Leader
Dominance of communication by one leader can be an intimidating experience for the team members and a detrimental to the productivity of a team. To redirect this behavior, Kourkouta and Papathanasiou (2014) suggests calmly talking to the domineering leader privately as the initial step. Fear and anxiety should be avoided when talking to the domineering leader, choosing to be assertive instead. While adopting the perspective of the leader is important in avoiding confrontations, it is not suitable in engaging the rest of the team members. Giving chances to the rest of the team members to air their perspectives can help redirect the dominance of the leader. Integrating nonverbal communication strategies with verbal strategies would be an effective approach in overcoming the domineering behavior of the leader.
Communication Strategies for Avoiding Full Responsibility Directed at the Nursing Department
Directing responsibility to one department undermines the efforts of the multidisciplinary team to achieve its goals. Researching on the causes of medication errors and how the errors can be avoided can be an initial strategy in avoiding full responsibility. Once a connection is established between other departmental responsibilities and medication errors, the facts can be presented in a formal manner to the team leader. Formal communication strategies such as formal letters and emails, formal meetings and presentations should be adopted to communicate with the team leader about the importance of participation of the other departments.
Use of the SBAR Technique to Facilitate Interpersonal Team Communication
The SBAR technique – Situation, background, assessment, and recommendation – is a communication tool that facilitates clear and concise sharing of focused information between team members (Heinrichs, Bauman & Dev, 2011). The technique provides a standardized communication approach for team members. SBAR can be used to facilitate interpersonal team communication in this situation in three steps. First, the sender of the information can organize the information using the four elements of the tool, including only the most important information. Presentation to the team members using the same format follows the first step. Familiarity with the SBAR format enhances effectiveness with which information is delivered. The last step involves confirmation and clarification of the information, which determines the next course of action.
Question 3
CQI Method used to Reduce Patient Falls
Continuous quality improvement in health care is imperative in not only enhancing patient outcomes, but also in reducing health care costs and improving patient satisfaction. Nurse managers can adopt various CQI models to inform quality improvement initiatives in clinical settings. The Institute of Healthcare Improvement model is a commonly utilized approach used to facilitate quality improvement initiatives. The model utilizes the Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle to institute and evaluate change initiatives (National Learning Consortium, 2013). The simplicity and versatility of the model makes it applicable to many clinical situations, including reducing patient falls. The model answers to three simple questions: What is the goal of the change, how can one tell that a change is an improvement, and what changes can result to improvement? An example is provided below:
What are we planning to achieve? Reduce the prevalence of patient falls
What measures will be used to determine improvement? – Reduction in fall rates, reduction in costs associated with falls, improved patient satisfaction with care services
What changes will result to the desired improvement: Hourly rounding within the wards, provision of assistive devices to patients
Addressing Patient Falls
The prevalence of patient falls in hospitals continues to be a worrying phenomenon. There is substantial evidence that points to the importance of hourly rounding in reducing the prevalence of patient falls. Educating the nurses on the importance of hourly rounding is essential in enhancing compliance. Although the practice of hourly rounding is acknowledged, the compliance rates are low, and addressing the issue of compliance can in turn help address the issue of patient falls.
References
Burgoon, J. K., Guerrero, L. K., & Floyd, K. (2016). Nonverbal communication. Britain:
Routledge.
Heinrichs, W. M., Bauman, E., & Dev, P. (2011). SBAR'flattens the hierarchy'among caregivers. Studies in Health Technology and Informatics, 173, 175-182.
Kourkouta, L., & Papathanasiou, I. V. (2014). Communication in nursing practice. Materia
Socio-medica, 26(1), 65.
National Learning Consortium. (2013). Continuous quality improvement strategies to
optimize your practice. Retrieved from https://www.healthit.gov/sites/default/files/tools/nlc_continuousqualityimprovementprimer.pdf
