Therapeutic Communication

Therapeutic communication is a core factor in mental health nursing. It is important for a mental health nurse to have knowledge and interpersonal skills to communicate with a client who is experiencing a mental health disorder. Therefore, it allows a good relationship between a nurse and a client. Communication is an involvement with thinking, feeling and behaviour either its verbal, in writing or non verbal. Therapeutic communication is mostly client focused and is towards patient’s “goal directed”. Therefore, it is essential for a nurse to review any relevant medical histories or clinical data regarding the client before an assessment and by talking to other caregivers’ information can be collected as a result of any arising or concerning

“The best and the most therapeutic thing to do are saying less and listen more”. It was stated by Stevenson (2008, p.110) “even if the mental health nurses does nothing but listen, there is likely to be a therapeutic effect.” Therefore listening can help client to feel that he is been cared and accepted which can make him feel important and respected. In addition a client can feel that there is someone who can hear and understand him and he can engage with other people like cares or helpers to develop trust. As a result, a client can feel less lonely or left by himself this allows him to convey his emotions and let go his tension. Listening involves “active” listening (McCabe and Timmins, 2006), which is providing full attention towards client by physically, mentally and emotionally. However, effective listening is a process of “cognitive, behavioural and affective process” (Arnold and Underman Boggs, 2003). Listening can involve non verbal behaviour that can be through eye contact by staring or avoiding eye contact. A nurse can use facial expression like frowning, smiling, biting lips and raising eyebrows as well as body movement with different posture or different gestures and shuffling. Therefore, there can be a psychological response which could be perspiring or breathing rapidly and blushes it can also involve a both client and nurses

On the other hand a mental health nurse should be aware of “their own non behavioural body language” before dealing with a client. It is important for a nurse to educate themselves regarding “body language” how it is being used when interacting with a client and also not to “over interpret non verbal communication” (Egan, 2010, p.147). A mental nurse should be mindful to different backgrounds and the sensitivity of different practices with concerns of using eye contacts and body languages with genders. Touch is another form of non verbal communication and also it is an important factor of therapeutic communication as well. Touch “can be used as a means of reassuring and/ or breaking down barriers between nurse and client” (Gleeson and Higgins, 2009). In mental health nursing touch is either helpful or technical in addition it can be compulsory or deliberate which has to dealt with care and respect as with all other communication skills. In the contemporary before attempting this skill a mental nurse has to take into consideration that offering touch has to be related to client’s needs. A nurse has to respect client’s culture their age, ethnicity and the gender as it is not acceptable in some cultures to touch someone who is not closer to them. Therefore, a nurse has to be mindful that a client’s response may not be predicted when touching them in a