Healthcare professionals must deal with their patients in an effective and professional manner so that these patients can achieve their optimum health outcomes. Essentially the health professionals must embrace the principles of motivational interviewing so that the patients can be in a position to make informed healthcare decisions. For one the healthcare professional must resist the righting reflex by allowing the patient to make personal decisions as opposed to offering solutions. Next, the health professional should show empathy to the patient so that the patient becomes reassured. Furthermore, the healthcare provider ought to understand the client’s motivation to change. Lastly, the healthcare provider should embrace the principle of encouraging hope and optimism to enhance behavior change.
| Patient and Nurse Conversation | Motivational Interviewing Guidelines |
| Nurse: Hello John. My name is Dianne your nurse coach. Dr. McAlister has contracted me to discuss with you on the importance of weight loss. I am aware that you would like to alter your lifestyle behaviors to manage diabetes. How do you feel about this decision? | A nurse coach is responsible for guiding the patient on his or her role in the management of his or her health. The nurse coach helps the patient to embrace the best healthcare practices to have improved healthcare outcomes. Dossey, Keegan, Barrere, Helming, Shields, and Avino, 2016). |
| John: I must say that I am overwhelmed right now. I do not know if I can do this right now. | |
| Nurse: I understand how you must be feeling. It is not easy to come to terms with the fact that you might be diabetic. Do not worry about it since what you are experiencing is common to all patients who get this diagnosis. I can help you to come up with interventions that will help you become healthier once again. | Nurse coach should exercise empathy with those patients who are hesitant on making healthcare changes. According to Dossey et al. (2016), reflective thinking is a significant component of empathy. The nurse coach should not judge or demoralize the patient as doing this interferes with the treatment. |
| John: I must say that I feel better now. I was pretty scared when Dr. McAlister broke the news of the probability of contracting diabetes. I was not prepared for such news. Now I am ready for the interventions. | |
| Nurse: I see that the diagnosis shocked you since you never thought yourself a diabetic. So why did you opt to come and see me? | The nurse coach ought to establish what the patient’s motivation is. In this case, the nurse will understand that the patient wants to make some healthcare choices to improve his health. (Dossey et al., 2016). |
| John: I want to reduce my weight since I have realized it is a predisposing factor to diabetes. I cannot just watch as diabetes takes over my life. | |
| Nurse: That is true. I know that you will be happy that you made a choice to manage your weight to reduce the chances of contracting diabetes. | The nurse coach ought to empower the patient by encouraging hope and optimism. The nurse coach should realize that there are patients who do not believe that they can be able to begin and maintain a behavioral change. Patients who internalize hope and optimism is in a better position to continue with the interventions to achieve their goals (Dossey et al., 2016). |
| John: I know I will be impressed with the turn of events. I really want to start right away to see the changes. | |
| Nurse: If you feel comfortable with your goals, I do not think there should be any more delays. Let me know when you are willing to start and I will be available to help you. | The nurse coach should resist the righting reflex by allowing the patient to lead the conversation. In this case, the intervention should be patient-centered. The nurse coach should not advise or offer solutions so that the patient owns the whole treatment process for better health outcomes (Dossey et al., 2016). |
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Summary Paragraph
The nurse coach should help patients to manage their own healthcare choices by guiding them rather than dictating what they ought to do. In doing this, the nurse coach uses four principles as outlined by Dossey and others. The first principle is on empathy, which allows the nurse coach to connect with the patients. The second principle is about understanding the patient’s motivation in seeking healthcare interventions. From here, the nurse coach encourages hope and optimism in the patient so that the patient is assured of initiating and completing an intervention. Lastly, the nurse coach allows the patient to drive the conversation by resisting the righting reflex of giving suggestions and directions. Overall, the behavioral change and modification become patient-centered, which in turn enhances the quality of healthcare outcomes.
References
Dossey, B. M., Keegan, L., Barrere, C., Helming, M. B., Shields, D. A., & Avino, K. M. (2016). Holistic Nursing: A Handbook for Practice . Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
