Author Question: The nurse is conducting an assessment while admitting a female Chinese patient to the medical unit. ... (Read 107 times)

nramada · **on:** Jul 23, 2018

The nurse is conducting an assessment while admitting a female Chinese patient to the medical unit. Which of the following actions will best enhance communication between the nurse and patient during the assessment? Select all that apply.

a. Making direct eye contact
b. Keeping 18 inches to 4 feet between nurse and the patient
c. Assessing for any language barrier
d. Including family members in the assessment process
e. Changing the subject during the assessment

Question 2

In the communication process, which of the following best describes characteristics of an effective oral message? Select all that apply.

a. Age appropriate
b. Developmental level appropriate
c. Short and simple
d. Delivered at an appropriate time
e. Congruent nonverbal cues

kingdude89 · **Reply #1 on:** Jul 23, 2018

Answer to Question 1

B, C
When communicating with the patient, the nurse should maintain a comfortable personal distance, which is typically 18 inches to 4 feet. This distance facilitates sharing of feelings or personal thoughts and communicating caring or concern. The nurse would also carefully assess verbal and nonverbal cues for indications of a language barrier. Patients having lower language comprehension or fluency might indicate understanding with nods or words of affirmation, although they might not understand all that the nurse is saying. Making direct eye contact in Western culture is widely acceptable; however, this may not be so in other cultures. Use direct eye contact only when doing so is culturally appropriate. Additionally, the nurse needs to assess for privacy concerns. During the assessment period, the nurse must consider the presence of others and patient privacy. Do not assume that because family members are present that they are privy to confidential patient information. Patients typically are most comfortable in a private setting. Abruptly changing the topic of discussion makes you seem uninterested.

Answer to Question 2

B, D, E
Effective messages are complete, clear, concise, organized, timely, and expressed in a manner that the receiver can understand. The message must be appropriate for the situation and for the developmental level, not age level, of the person receiving the message. Although the message should be clear and concise, this does not mean that it should be short and simple depending on what needs to be communicated. Nonverbal behaviors (e.g., facial expression, hand and body gestures, posture, movement, touch) emphasize and clarify the spoken word.