Chapter 4: Communication - Nurselytic

Correct Answer: A,B,C,D

Rationale: Listening is sometimes active and sometimes passive. Active listening requires full attention to what the patient is saying. The message is heard, its meaning is interpreted, and the patient is given feedback, indicating understanding of the message. Verbally interpreting the meaning of what the patient has said is an example of active listening. In passive listening, the nurse indicates that they are listening to what the patient is saying either nonverbally, through eye contact and nodding, or verbally through encouraging phrases such as 'Uh-huh' and 'I see.' All of the other options are examples of passive listening.

Correct Answer: A,D,E,F

Rationale:
Touch is a form of nonverbal communication that is inherent in the practice of nursing. Nearly every nursing intervention for the purpose of providing physical care calls for touch.
Touch is frequently highly personal or of an intimate nature (e.g., giving a bed bath, assisting a patient on or off a bedpan, inserting a urinary catheter). Because of the intimate nature of touch in the nursing context, it is necessary to use it with great discretion to fit into sociocultural norms and guidelines. Some nurses are uncomfortable with touch because of a fear of it seeming inappropriate or being misinterpreted. When a nurse feels comfortable with physical contact with a patient, touch has great potential for conveying warmth, caring, support, and understanding. For the nurse to convey warmth, it is absolutely necessary for the nature of their touch to be sincere and genuine.

Correct Answer: B,C,D,E

Rationale: Use of touch, eye contact, reference of address, and meaning of gestures all may have cultural significance and connotation. Slow, loud speech would not assist with speaking to a person of a different culture.

Correct Answer: A,C,D,E

Rationale: Difficulty speaking, attending, disorientation, dyspnea, and sensory deficits are all defining characteristics that warrant a diagnosis of impaired verbal communication. Being a geriatric patient does not necessarily support the patient problem of impaired verbal communication.

Correct Answer: A,C,D,E

Rationale: Maintaining silence is an extremely effective therapeutic communication technique, and yet tends to be quite underused. Because silence often feels awkward in American society, people tend to feel the need to 'fill' it. This impulse does not always allow the people involved in an interaction time to organize their thoughts sufficiently to communicate what they would like. It is common for a person to need several seconds after hearing a verbal message to interpret what has been stated and to formulate the most appropriate response. Unfortunately, the receiver often does not get this amount of time before a response is necessary. In many cases, the sender becomes uncomfortable with the silence and begins speaking again before the receiver has had an opportunity to formulate a response and is really ready to deliver it. The ability to use silence effectively requires skill and timing. It is easy for prolonged periods of misunderstood silence to cause uneasiness and tension. However, in many cases, purposeful use of silence conveys respect, understanding, caring, and support, and it is often used in conjunction with therapeutic touch.