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Nurses are usually dealing with individuals in sensitive and stressful medical situations. These individuals may be experiencing a wide variety of emotions and in some cases might take out their stress and frustration on the nearest person which may be their nurse. Luckily there are a variety of techniques out there that you can learn and practice that will help you as you navigate these tense situations. By strengthening empathy skills and working to develop de-escalation techniques nurses can equip themselves with the tools they need to diffuse these difficult situations. This article will highlight some of the more useful de-escalation techniques along with additional tips for dealing with challenging patient encounters. Cambridge College of Healthcare & Technology offers both Associate of Science and Bachelor of Science degrees in Nursing so you can learn more about the skills required to successfully navigate the different care needs of all patients.
Stay Calm
One of the hardest things to do when faced with a difficult situation is to keep one’s cool but this is one of the most important things you can do when working with an upset patient. Nurses need to be able to maintain control of any situation and avoid getting defensive or triggered by a patient’s behavior. If emotions do arise, step away from the situation momentarily and take a few deep breaths to help get everything back under control.
Use Active Listening
For most people it is important to feel that their concerns are being heard and taken seriously. Nurses should be especially focused on being attentive to the concerns voiced by their patients in an effort to establish trust and to assure the patient that their priority is to provide appropriate care to help improve the patient’s condition.
Display Empathy
Much like active listening, showing empathy for a patient makes them feel like they matter and can go a long way in helping to ease anxiety and fear. Empathetic nurses can acknowledge and validate that a patient’s concerns are real and that they are truly interested in trying to make things better. Empathy can be displayed in a number of ways but sometimes all it takes is handing someone a tissue when they are visibly upset or looking them in the eye so you can make them feel seen.
Set Boundaries
While nurses need to be concerned with the well-being of their patients, they also need to take measures to keep themselves safe. Nurses should never take abuse from a patient and if they recognize that someone is becoming offensive or threatening, they need to be able to set clear boundaries for what is acceptable and respectful behavior.
Get Help if Needed
While most patients do not present a threat to a nurse’s safety, there are times when emotions escalate beyond where they can be controlled. In some cases, it is necessary to ask for help to avoid getting into a dangerous situation. Although even if a situation does not necessarily become dangerous, if you feel overwhelmed or that things are moving in direction where you feel out of control it is important to ask for assistance to get things back on track.
Next Steps
Are you ready to get started on developing your nursing skills and join this exciting career field? Look no further than Cambridge College of Healthcare & Technology. Cambridge offers two nursing degree programs that can give you the hands-on skills and training to lead to success in this career. For more information, visit the Cambridge College website and check out what we have to offer. You can also fill out a Request Info form and provide your contact information so someone can get back in touch with you. We hope you will consider Cambridge for the next step in your educational journey.