5 Tips to Effectively Earn Your Patient’s Trust

5 Tips to Effectively Earn Your Patient’s Trust

by | Apr 15, 2023 | Nursing

5 Tips to Effectively Earn Your Patient’s Trust

How do you earn your patient’s trust? Earning our patient’s trust is vital to us nurses. We can provide them with the best nursing care if they trust us.

But how can we gain our patient’s trust? Is there a magic word to use? 

 

Every Patient is Different

Not all patients are the same. They all have different personalities, moods, and preferences. Sometimes, it’s hard to guess what kind of mood our patients are in, especially when they’re in pain for some time. 

As nurses, we must adjust our personalities to our patients. We cannot be angry or grumpy when the patient screams at us.

We have to be firm but gentle towards them at the same time. Seeing them beyond their pain and complaints is the first step to earning their trust. 

So how can we gain our patient’s trust? Here’s how

 

#1. Introduce yourself and address your patient by their name

The first thing you must do in building any relationship is to introduce yourself. An introduction is an obvious thing to do, especially in a healthcare setting where you care for different patients. Just like building a relationship, an introduction is the first step.

However, introducing yourself to your patient is sometimes forgotten in a busy healthcare unit or setting. But remember that you will be the patient’s first point of contact for their concerns, calls for help, or inquiries.

It is vital that they feel like they know you and are receiving personal care from you. We cannot always remember every patient’s name, so an initial introduction is crucial. 

Introduce yourself and shake your patient’s hand. Tell them your name and who you are. Ask them what they prefer to be called and take note of this on their chart.

It will ensure a consistent level of care even when staff changes. It will also help the patient feel at ease, knowing they have someone to call if needed. 

 

#2. Always dress professionally

You’ve probably heard the phrase, “First impressions always last.” This phrase is accurate, so how your patient sees you is essential. How you introduce yourself is one thing, but how you show up is another.

As nurses, we must dress appropriately. Wearing a nurse’s uniform is one way, as most people will think that a person wearing that uniform has the proper training and knows what they’re doing.

But make sure that your scrubs or uniform are clean and pressed. It will create the right impression. Avoid showing up in your patient’s room with blood-stained scrubs or drenched in puke or body fluids.

Your patients may not be comfortable with you and may not cooperate with you at all. Always keep your appearance as positive as possible. 

 

#3. Listen to your patients.

Going in and out of your patient’s room is easy, especially when you’re taking their vital signs. You can mutter a few words while writing information on their charts but earning your patient’s trust is more than that. If you want to build trust:

  1. Talk to them.
  2. Make eye contact and actively listen.
  3. Ask questions, and converse with them.
  4. Pay attention to your body language, sit in front of them, and make it clear that they have your attention. 

Sometimes, taking a break from your usual nurse routines and being present with the patient. Take time to hear them out and listen to them express themselves.

When a patient knows they’re being listened to will make them feel confident that their concerns are addressed. That makes them trust you as their nurse. 

 

#4. Keep your word

It’s tempting to comfort a distressed patient by telling them that things will be okay. However, you must make sure that you act with integrity and honesty at all times.

Patients and their families appreciate honesty even though your honesty can sometimes be hard to accept. Avoid making false promises. Keep your word by following through with what you tell your patient. It is one of the best ways to earn their trust. 

You don’t have to promise anything significant. Following through with simple acts can help your patient feel they can rely on you. If you say you’ll be back in an hour, then be back in an hour.

Again, keep your word. If you can’t guarantee this, tell them you’ll likely be called away to an emergency or other tasks. Again, don’t make any promises you can’t keep. 

Our work demands are unpredictable, especially in a busy healthcare setting. If this happens, ask someone to speak with your patient, maybe another colleague familiar with your patient, and keep them updated on what is happening. These are a few ways to earn your patient’s trust. 

 

#5. Be Trustworthy

To be trusted means you have to be trustworthy too. Being open and honest with your patient is one step. And even when the situation is unfavorable, keeping your honesty is a must.

Your honesty may not always be a comfortable place to be in, but your patients and their families will appreciate it. 

Always keep your word, and do not promise anything you can’t do. When your patients trust you, building a relationship with them can help improve their recovery time, making administering treatment more manageable.

Therefore for your patients to trust you, you must also put in the effort and show them that you’re genuine with your intentions to help them. 

 

Looking for more nursing and travel nursing information? Check out these helpful links!

EP 207: When Your Patient Falls

EP 207: When Your Patient Falls

by | Mar 17, 2023 | Podcast

EP 207: When Your Patient Falls

Patient falls are one of the many incidents that could happen to patients in hospitals, and as much as nurses do their best to prevent this from happening, it cannot be avoided. It does happen. But can you avoid this incident?

And what are the usual or common causes of patient falls? Knowing these can help save your patient’s life and your license. It’s best to be prepared at all times. 

In today’s episode, we will discuss our experiences when a patient fell. We’ll also discuss how it happened, how we felt, and what we had to do. In addition to that, we will also discuss what to do when a patient falls and the most common causes of it. 

What to Do When a Patient Falls

  1. Call for help and stay with the patient
  2. Assess the patient for any injuries
    • Ask what happened and if they have any pain or hit their head
    • If the patient is unable to respond appropriately, assume they hit their head
    • Are there any visible injuries?
  3. Notify MD, Charge, house supervisor
  4. Take the patient to CT
  5. Notify family if needed
  6. Make the patient a forever high fall risk
  7. Chart what happened
  8. File an incident report

Reports on Patients Falling in Hospitals

Each year, somewhere between 700,000 and 1,000,000 people in the United States fall into the hospital. A fall may result in fractures, lacerations, or internal bleeding, increasing health care utilization. 

  • Falls occur at a rate of 3–5 per 1000 bed-days
  • Resulting in around 250,000 injuries and up to 11,000 deaths
  • Approximately one in four falls result in injury, with about 10% resulting in serious injury.

Most Common Causes of Patient Falls

We looked at several websites to see the most common causes of falls. According to some law firms, the most common causes of falls are:

  • Failure to Call a Nurse for Assistance
  • The Bed-Exit Alarm is Not Set
  • Patients are on High-Risk Medication
  • Patient Inaccurately Assessed
  • Delayed Response when the Nurse is Called
  • Nurse and staff shortages
  • Slippery floors and surfaces
  • Inefficient work environments
  • Poorly lit or obstructed views

According to the joint commission, the most causes of falls are:

  • Fall risk assessment issues
    • Inconsistency in the rating of patients (Hester Davis tool)
    • Risk assessment tools not being an accurate predictor of falls
  • Handoff communication issues
    • Inconsistent or incomplete communication of patient risk for falls between caregivers
  • Toileting Issues
    • The patient did not seek help and fell while toileting
    • Medications that increase the risk of falls combined with toileting
  • Call Light Issues
    • The patient did not know, forgot, or chose not to use the call light
  • Education and Organizational Culture Issues
    • Lack of standardization of practice and application of interventions
    • Fall prevention education for patients and families is not used or is inconsistently used
    • Patient awareness and acknowledgment of their own risk for falls
  • Medical issues
    • Patient on one or more medications that increase the risk of falls (e.g., diuretics, laxatives, narcotics, antipsychotics, or anti-hypertensives) 

 

Sources:

https://www.vanweylaw.com/insights/top-reasons-hospital-falls-occur-medical-facilities/
https://www.jacksonwhitelaw.com/az-personal-injury/causes-of-falls-for-patients-in-hospitals/
http://www.hpoe.org/Reports-HPOE/2016/preventing-patient-falls.pdf 

To avoid this situation, watch the full episode here 👇👇👇

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 Introduction
03:02 Matt’s Patient Fall Experience
10:20 Peter’s Patient Fall Experience
16:46 Who is liable for patient falls
20:26 What to do when a Patient Falls
24:55 LAW FIRM: Most commons reasons why patients fall
28:44 Healthcare Joint Commission: Most commons reasons why patients fall
37:52 Wrapping up the show

EP 196: What is Sports Psychology With Sean O’Connor

EP 196: What is Sports Psychology With Sean O’Connor

by | Dec 31, 2022 | Podcast

What is Sports Psychology With Sean O’Connor

Sports psychology is a practical skill that helps address athletes’ optimal performance and well-being. How can this be used? And what do you know about sports psychology? 

Traumas and repressed emotions can affect us in the long run. Some of us can handle these emotions well, while others displace them, creating more trauma, stress, fear, anger, resentment, depression, and anxiety.

How can people heal from this? Is there a way to work through these feelings? 

In this episode, we would like to introduce you to Sean O’Connor. Sean is a licensed mental health counselor (LMHC) at Peaceful Living Mental Health Counseling in Scarsdale, NY.

He specializes in sports psychology and trauma-informed counseling to help adults and athletes overcome anger, depression, anxiety, PTSD, and stress. 

To treat his patients, he uses a combination of EMDR therapy, mindfulness, meditative science, polyvagal theory for nervous system regulation, and neurofeedback when working with clients.

Sean loves working with athletes and survivors of past trauma to help them heal from the past, love the present, and have hope for the future.

Questions for Our Guest

The questions below are some we’d like to tackle. We often go off-topic, so we don’t expect to hit them all. If you have any ideas, please let us know.

Looking forward to our conversation!

These are the questions you had in Calendly. We’ll go off your questions and wherever else our conversation goes.

  1. Can you give us a little background about yourself?

2. How did you get into Sports Psychology & what is sports psychology?

3. How do Athletes cultivate their identity? 

4. What does it take to improve your mental health?

  • What is the simplicity of happy living?
  • What are some common stigmas in mental health?

5. How does holistic health play a role in mental health?

6. What is the Polyvagal theory?

7. What is the problem with the age of information? 

8. Martial arts

ENDING QUESTIONS

Before we end the show, we have one last question we like to ask all our guests. If you had the opportunity to have a Cup of coffee with anybody one last time, who would it be & why? 

Connect with Sean through his Instagram @peacefullivingcounseling Or visit their website at https://www.peacefullivingmentalhealthcounseling.com/. 

Do you want to know more about sports psychology? Click here for more 👇👇👇

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 Introduction
02:11 About Sean O’Connor
08:41 What is the language of an Athlete
12:13 The most frequent problems that athletes face
15:35 What transpires when an athlete leaves their sport
17:37 How to guide struggling athletes
22:34 What are the traits of an athlete
25:27 How to overcome extreme pressure and performance anxiety
30:38 How to communicate to a person who is tense and fearful
36:02 How important is physical health to mental health
40:16 How to recognize danger and when it exists
43:25 How our emotions make our consciousness
48:18 The negative impacts of the modern age of information
52:31 What makes EMDR more efficient
58:43 How martial arts enhance both mental and physical health
01:08:03 How martial arts foster self-control
01:11:45 The significance of a warm community
01:19:48 What separates an elite athlete from the rest
01:22:13 Wrapping up the show

Miscommunication Among Nurses and How to Avoid It

Miscommunication Among Nurses and How to Avoid It

by | Dec 24, 2022 | Nursing

Miscommunication Among Nurses and How to Avoid It

Nurses are among the essential workers in the healthcare world, especially now that we have a pandemic. However, miscommunication among nurses is an issue that happens quite often.

How can this be avoided? What causes miscommunication among nurses? 

 

How Can Miscommunication Among Nurses Be Avoided?

There are a couple of ways that nurses can avoid miscommunication. Keep in mind that being able to relay the correct information about their patients can make a difference in nursing care.

As a nurse, you must provide accurate data regarding their condition so proper nursing can be given. Here’s how you can do that:

 

1. Make eye contact when endorsing patients.

There is a sense of relief whenever the shift is over, especially if it has been toxic since you first clocked in. While it is exciting to exit the nurse’s station once your shift ends, make proper endorsements first.

The best way to ensure no miscommunication is to make eye contact with the next nurse on duty when endorsing the patient’s chart. 

Take the time to explain everything, from the procedures done to the patient, medications given, the diagnosis (if you have to), and even the physician/s who came to check in with them.

Making eye contact gives you a chance to scan for any uncertainty in their face or if they understood what was said to them. It is also the best way to engage someone in a conversation and ensure they listen to what you say. 

 

2. Use bedside nursing boards.

Bedside nursing boards are also commonly known as bed-census boards. These can help you with an open line of communication among nurses in the team/building, the patient’s families, and you as health care providers.

The boards help with the patient’s condition and communicate with their families and the rest of the hospital staff. Understand that there are tons of healthcare providers in the hospital working on patients.

Failing to communicate properly can lead to negative consequences.

Bedside boards are essential in providing reports to the next nurse on duty. It can help them understand what happened during your shift and fill them in on the patient’s history if this is their first time handling them.

Bed census boards also prove to the patient’s families that proper care is given to their loved ones. 

 

3. Take time to talk to your patients.

Nurses are often busy on each shift, and, unsurprisingly, they cannot give their patients’ full attention. However, taking the time to check on your patients, listen to their concerns, and show that you can help are enough to put them at ease. It is also a good nursing quality to have. 

Allowing a few minutes of one-on-one conversation with your patients can be rewarding. It is easier to see how they are improving and establish a sense of trust as their nurse. Although you may not do this daily, it is best to create a routine and stick to it. 

 

How Can Nurses Improve Their Communication Skills?

Improving communication among nurses is possible. To do this, nurses like you practice patience and become better listeners. When you listen, you don’t offer one ear but both. Keep in mind that you are working with other nurses who are also busy. Listening to each other is crucial to providing better services to patients. 
 
You can also avoid communication conflict when you practice active listening. Active listening is repeating the key points of the conversation to the speaker. So, make it a habit to listen to your coworkers and improve your listening skills. 
 
Another way to avoid miscommunication among nurses is not to interrupt the speaker. This could be helpful during endorsements at the end of the shift. Allow the person to finish talking first before asking questions.
 
Keep in mind that even the slightest cues can determine the condition of patients. Resist the urge to ask questions whenever someone is talking. 
 
As a nurse, you must also learn to maintain a positive attitude. Remember, happiness is contagious! Your positive outlook can also affect your coworkers and even your patients.
 
When things get a little serious, be sure to keep your emotions in check. Your nurse training taught you to remain professional and courteous during conversations. No matter how angry or upset you are, keep it cool.
 
Be aware that your emotions can affect others and your ability to communicate at work. When you do so, miscommunication among nurses will not happen.

 

 

In Closing

Communication is an essential part of patient care, and when this is done accordingly,

it is nurses can work together effectively. If you feel like you or your coworkers are missing out on proper communication, take the step to address this issue.

It will surely help your team and other hospital staff improve as you provide nursing care to your patients. 

 

Looking for more nursing and travel nursing information? Check out these helpful links!

EP 173: Determining Fluid Status in Patients

EP 173: Determining Fluid Status in Patients

by | Jul 22, 2022 | Podcast

Determining Fluid Status in Patients

Maintaining the correct fluid balance in the body is crucial to the health of our patients. Knowing how to check for fluid status in patients will help determine if they are overhydrated or dehydrated. 

That said, learning how to determine fluid status in your patients is essential, and you will learn all about it in this post.

Assessing a patient’s fluid status is a critical skill you will regularly do as a nurse. It involves evaluating if a patient is hypovolaemic, euvolemic, or hypervolaemic.

Hypovolaemia vs Hypervolaemia 

Hypovolaemia refers to a deficit of fluid in the body. Causes include:

  • Poor fluid intake.
  • Excessive fluid loss (e.g., vomiting, diarrhea, hemorrhage, excessive diuretic therapy).
  • Third, space loss of fluid.

Hypervolaemia refers to an excess of fluid in the body. It is also known as fluid overload. Hypervolaemia is expected in the elderly and those with renal or cardiac failure.

It can be caused by excessive fluid intake or inappropriate fluid retention (e.g., heart failure, renal failure). It is also why checking patients’ fluid status is crucial. 

Assessment Findings Determining Fluid Status in Patients

  • Bleeding from any source
  • Vomiting: frequency, volume, presence of blood
  • Stools: frequency, volume, presence of blood
  • Fever and diaphoresis
  • Urine output: color and volume
  • Heart rate
  • Lung sounds
  • Pre-syncope/syncope
  • Mucous membrane – Wet or dry?
  • Skin tugor – skin tenting 
  • Capillary refills <3 seconds
  • Oral intake
  • Daily weight 
  • Fluid restrictions
  • Fluid overloaded symptoms:
    • shortness of breath
    • Orthopnoea
    • paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea
    • leg swelling

Labs of Fluid Status in Patients

  • Full blood count – May reveal raised hematocrit in hypovolaemia  
  • Urea and Electrolytes – Urea/creatinine will be raised in hypovolaemic patients and those with acute or chronic renal disease. Electrolytes such as sodium may be low in hypervolaemic patients (e.g., dilutional hyponatremia).
  • Urine and Serum osmolality – consider if suspected SIADH or DI. 
  • BNP is a marker of cardiac stretch under the effect of fluid overload.

Passive leg raise

If a patient has a blood pressure cuff, and you want to see if the patient will be fluid responsive, a passive leg raise is easy to check. Passively raise the patient’s legs to at least 45 degrees and check a patient’s blood pressure before and after the leg raise.

You can also lift the foot of the bed and see if there are changes in the blood pressure. This motion acts as a mini fluid bolus because you are forcing the blood to go from the legs into the core. 

Orthostatic 

Orthostatic hypotension, also called postural hypotension, is a form of low blood pressure that happens when standing after sitting or lying down. To check orthostatic:

  1. Have the patient lie down for 5 minutes.
  2. Measure blood pressure and pulse rate.
  3. Have the patient stand.
  4. Repeat blood pressure and pulse rate measurements after standing for 1 and 3 minutes.

A drop of 20 mmHg in the systolic is supportive of hypotension.  

Jugular venous pressure (JVP)

JVP provides an indirect measure of central venous pressure. The Internal jugular vein runs between the medial end of the clavicle and the ear lobe. 

To check this position, see that the patient is in a 45-degree place, turn their head slightly to the left, and assess the vein. 

A raised JVP indicates the presence of venous hypertension/hypervolemia. It can also be indicative of Right-sided heart failure. 

Patients with a Central Venous Pressure (CVP) 

These patients have access to the central venous system and peripheral arterial line. When you have a Central Venous Pressure (CVP), you can measure the patient’s preload. That will directly correlate with the patient’s fluid status. 

A CVP is good for checking where your patient’s fluid level is moving. A normal CVP is between 8 to 12 mmHg. 

Systemic Vascular Resistance (SVR)

If you don’t have a Swan, you can still check an SVR by Non-Invasive Continuous Measurement. SVR is the afterload, the pressure the heart is working against to push blood across the body.

A normal SVR is between 900 and 1440 dyn/s. If your SVR is below 900, you will be more dilated vascularly; if above 1500, you will be more clamped down. 

So if you have a patient that needs fluids, you will have someone with a high SVR because the body is clamping down to increase volume to help maintain blood pressure.

Maybe your patient is low BP, but the SVR is down, well, that can be a sepsis issue, and we can fix the SVR with vasopressors. 

Swan-Ganz catheterization

Swan-Ganz catheterization is also known as right heart catheterization. The tiny catheter is placed into the right side of the heart and the arteries leading to the lungs.

This catheter monitors the heart’s function, blood flow, and pressures in and around the heart. 

One way to check fluid status on a Swan is by looking at the cardiac index. The index relies on cardiac output and turns cardiac output into a normalized value that accounts for the patient’s body size. A normal Cardiac Index is 2.5 – 4.0L/min/m2

Here’s how you can determine the fluid status in your patients correctly. Click here for the full episode 👇

TIMESTAMP:

00:00 Introduction
01:21 Hypovolaemia vs Hypervolaemia
03:36 Assessment findings to determine fluid status
13:28 Passive leg raise
15:13 Orthostatic
17:02 Jugular Venous Pressure
18:06 Central Venous Pressure
24:55 Systemic Vascular Resistance
28:24 Swan-Ganz catheterization
33:07 Wrapping up the episode