Therapeutic Comm Q 20
When the community health nurse visits a patient at home, the patient states, “I haven’t slept the last couple of nights.” Which response by the nurse illustrates a therapeutic communication response to this patient?
A. "I see."
B. "Really?"
C. "You're having difficulty sleeping?"
D. "Sometimes, I have trouble sleeping too."
Correct Answer: C. “You’re having difficulty sleeping?”
The correct option uses the therapeutic communication technique of restatement. Although restatement is a technique that has a prompting component to it, it repeats the patient’s major theme, which assists the nurse in obtaining a more specific perception of the problem from the patient.
Option A: An essential factor to build a therapeutic nurse-client relationship is showing genuine interest to the client. For the nurse to do this, he or she should be open, honest, and display congruent behavior. Congruence only occurs when the nurse’s words match with her actions.
Option B: Stay away from nontherapeutic habits such as asking irrelevant personal questions, stating personal opinions, or showing disapproval. Ask open-ended questions, such as, “Tell me about your difficulties,” to encourage the patient to take the lead in the discussion, and prompt him by suggesting he tell you more.
Option D: This option is not a therapeutic response since it does not encourage the patient to expand on the problem. Offering personal experiences moves the focus away from the patient and onto the nurse.