Colloborative and Therapeutic Practice in Nursing

Nurses provide nursing care to people of all ages and cultural groups. The role of the nurse includes promotion and maintenance of health and prevention of illness for individuals as well as alleviation of pain and suffering. Nurturing this role requires nurses to possess interpersonal skills of communication and relating with patients in order to gather relevant and useful data for clinical assessment (ANMC, 2005). The purpose of this essay is to study how nurses can utilize their interpersonal skills, empowerment and therapeutic relationship practice to comply non compliant patients like Mr. Paul Bhatt to participate in his self care. Mr. Paul Bhatt's background states that he is a young man of 27 years old, who migrated from Nepal with his parents when he was still in secondary school. Being only son he is very committed to his family financial obligations and his aviation career. He gives priority to these important aspects of his life neglecting his health. Paul considers himself to be in good health because he has to have regular medical check-ups to maintain his aviation qualifications so he is sure they would let him know if anything was a problem. But according to Paul's GP his medical conditions are not in good control, he should watch his weight as his BMI was 30. He has asthma for which he uses Ventolin puffer which he feels is well controlled and so he doesn't bother to use prescribed preventive inhaler and 12 months ago was also diagnosed with hypertension for which he was advised to take anti-hypertensive medications every day which he is avoiding as it makes him drowsy when he drinks alcohol. Being alcoholic – consuming 4 stubbies of beer daily and he also admits to being a regular smoker, Paul now become unwell and has been admitted to hospital. His GP has labeled him non-compliant as he never took his advice seriously and also didn't take prescribed medicine on time.

Building relationships is central to nursing work. The first impression is the most important; the initial interaction between patient and nurse sets the stage for the entire relationship as they spend the most time and have most contact with patients. Establishment of a therapeutic relationship requires reflective practice. This concept includes the required capacities of: self-awareness, self-knowledge, empathy, awareness of boundaries and limits of the professional role (Nursing best practice guideline, July 2002, p. 1-8). Therapeutic relationship in nursing was first described by Peplau (1952). Her writings described the nature of a helping relationship and the process by which the nurse can facilitate personal growth in patients like Mr. Bhatt by helping him to identify felt difficulties, experience emotions, and understand his own behavior. As per her theory relationship develops in predictable stages and that the patient's behavior changes as the relationship progress and she refers these phases as