The primary responsibility of a nurse is to provide care and support for patients. However, for nurses to accurately do this, they need to assess what a patient is thinking to know the best way to cater to their needs. Nurses apply psychology in the workplace to improve their relations with patients and leverage their skills. Nurses also work in an environment where they have to work to bring out the best quality care for the patient. During patient management, they need to understand how a patient reacts to different situations. This article will discuss the role played by psychology in the nursing field.
Importance of psychology in Nursing
As we have discussed above, nurses need to assess how patients react to different factors. A good example is, kids are more afraid than adults and respond differently to medication. They may also find it hard to understand their illnesses. Psychology, therefore, plays a vital role in the nursing field, as discussed below:
It improves patient interaction
Nursing involves dealing with patients with varying illnesses, and the nurses must understand the patient’s well-being to administer proper medication procedures. They need to understand what brings about the change in the thoughts and attitudes of the patient. Nurses with a background in psychology can also delineate different factors such as age and gender while dealing with patients. Young patients are easily distracted and afraid of attention from adults. A good nurse will therefore need to apply knowledge in psychology to deal with them. By building a good relationship between the patient and the nurse, patients can openly interact with nurses and communicate their needs to the caregivers.
Proper health assessment
Different patients come in suffering from various conditions. When a nurse considers the level of discomfort or severity of a disease on a patient, they need proper psychological assessment. The emotional and mental status of the patient helps determine a patient’s behavior and reaction to bad health. Some patients are very optimistic even in the worst of circumstances, and this shows the nurse that such patients are likely to respond better to treatment. Other groups of patients might be angry and hopeless, and nurses will know that such a group of patients will have more difficulty dealing with symptoms. Such patients will need more attention to cope with their conditions compared to other patients. If you need nursing paper writers, you can hire professional writing services to do your nursing academic paper for you.
Creating a good healthcare plan
A nurse needs to make a vital decision when deciding the proper healthcare method for treating a patient. The mental and physical state of a patient predominantly affects the decisions made when creating a healthcare plan. A patient with anxiety problems, then Such a dangerous habit might give rise to secondary infections. Therefore, a nurse needs to perform a psychological assessment and engage and encourage a patient concerning their situation. Providing emotional support also helps individuals craft plans that meet a patient’s psychological health. A patient ends up trusting the nurse and responding better to medication. If you need such custom essays on nursing, you can try our online writing services for the best outcomes.
It helps nurses work in their professional environment
The nursing profession is teamwork, and different entities have to work together to ensure a patient’s success. A nurse should understand the psychology of a patient and that of the colleagues and people around for practical work. A nurse is also expected to collaborate with other healthcare practitioners to solve any arising problems at the workplace. All these hurdles are overcome by knowledge in psychology to help avert a crisis in the workplace. Check out our paper writing services for reliable articles on health.
Bits of help understand and advise relatives
Nursing employs a holistic approach, and the nurse interacts with the patients and their relatives. After identifying the patient’s individual behavioral and personality traits, they need to explain this to the relatives, as they will be the caregivers once the patient is discharged. They, therefore, need to understand the well-wishers and relatives and how they can collaborate to ascertain success in the patient’s treatment. Sometimes it is difficult for nurses to get the necessary cooperation and understand why they took a specific course of action. Psychology, therefore, helps nurses meet the genuine concerns of all parties.
Psychology helps nurses understand themselves
Sometimes, a nurse might be battling with their problems, and psychology helps them understand themselves and how they can be of value even with the issues that face them. Nurses have different attitudes, coping mechanisms, strengths, and weaknesses. When nurses understand their limitations, they can efficiently undertake tasks since they will develop better personality traits. By understanding oneself better after taking an online masters in psychology, it will be possible for a nurse to lead a professional and balanced life.
Improves communication skills
Another quality that nurses must possess is learning how to communicate with sick patients. For instance, a patient that is in pain might be easily agitated. A nurse needs a good understanding of psychology to deal with such a patient calmly. A nurse also needs to know how to stay calm when they are faced with an agitated patient. Sometimes a patient might be paranoid or anxious concerning an upcoming procedure, and the nurse should communicate to the patient. Clear communication eases expectations and offers comfort and support to a patient. If you want help to write your nursing essay, you can use our reliable essay writing service for students.
The nursing field is mainly dependent on the capacity of different disciplines to work together. The multidisciplinary approach helps nurses operate properly and collaborate with the concerned parties. Therefore, psychology in nursing makes it possible for these healthcare professionals to understand situations and people linked directly or indirectly in the nursing field. Thus, psychology helps improve the medical practice as a whole by fostering patient cooperation and obligations to make nursing a success.
A professional writer with over a decade of incessant writing skills. Her topics of interest and expertise range from health, nutrition and psychology.