Tenesia Sealey

2312 wrightsville ave wilmington, NC 28403

Tel: 9105472871 tsealey2@uncc.edu

Charlotte, North Carolina 28223

Tuesday April 12, 2011

This Inquiry Project has taken up a lot of time over this semester. I
wrote about my cautions in other papers regarding what we were
supposed to actually do, but once I figured it out it was easier to get
the project done. I think i learned a lot from this project because I was
interested in the topic and I was able to go through different steps to
get to the final piece other then just writing a rough and final draft. I
choose to present my paper in the form of a letter because I felt like it
was a better way to show what I have learned. I wrote to my future self
because I am going into the nursing career and will need this
information in the future. I also think putting it as a letter takes away
from the boredom of reading a research paper.

Dear Future Self,

Congratulations on graduating. I am so proud of what you have

become. I know we have been through school together for many years
and you probably think you know everything there is to know about
you field of work. Truth is you probably do, well at least you should, you
went to school long enough! However, there are a few things I would
like to tell you that may help you considering you are on the search for
a job. I think my suggestions will do you well once you get a job and
begin working with patients.

College supplied you with the knowledge in the subject of nursing. You
learned mathematics, sciences, and english. You were also forced to
learn many things that you probably do not remember, and do not
necessarily care to be reminded of. Don’t worry, I am writing to answer
the question you have yet to ask yourself: “How do I communicate with
my patients?”.

I read in a book once that “to become a successful nurse requires

understanding the wide variety of human responses to stressful
circumstances in the healthcare setting.”(Sheldon) You can take this
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how you want to, but I think this quote means that you have to be
ready for anything that comes your way. I know you are prepared to
care for dying patients, but are you prepared to talk to them? Can you
relax them enough to keep them calm but at the same time assure
yourself that you are not giving them false hope? These are very
important questions to consider asking yourself before you get in the
situation and cannot handle it.

In the same book from the quote above, Communication with

Nurses, Lisa Sheldon discusses the nursing theorists’ Hildegard
Peplau’s Theory of Interpersonal Relations. “Within this theory are
different phases that occur when a nurse and patient come together
during the healthcare process.”(Sheldon, 13) Peplau says that nurses
function with six roles. Here are the roles:

“1. Stranger role: The nurse and the patient are introduced to each
other as strangers.

2. Resource role: The nurse relays clinical information to the patient.

The nurse will answer simple questions in this phase.

3. Teaching role: The nurse is like a teacher to the patient. The nurse
gives the patient instructions and training.

4. Counseling role: The nurse gives encouragement and guidance so

that the patient can integrate his or her current life experience.

5. Surrogate role: The nurse is there for the patient. He/She helps the
patient realize their domains of independence, dependence, and
interdependence.

6. Active leadership role: The nurse assists the patient in achieving

responsibility for treatment goals in a mutually satisfying
way.”(Sheldon, 14)

These phases will be very important in the process of learning about

your patients. You may ask why. In order to know what to say to your
patients, you have to realize the phase in which you and your patient
are in. In the different phases you treat your patients differently.
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My opinion is that the “stranger role” is the most important. You have
to consider cultural differences when you first meet your patients. Not
everyone that you come in to contact with will be like you and believe
the same things that you do. You have to “Use cultural awareness in
communication” (Sheldon. 46). In Communication for Nurses Lisa
Sheldon explains that you have to “consider the individual first and the
cultural and ethnic backgrounds second.” You are pretty much an all
around person and have grown up around many different cultures, but
you have to remember there will be many more beliefs and cultures
introduced to you in the medical field and you must know how to
handle this. “You should asses the language needs of the patient, and
ask for a interpreter if necessary.”(Sheldon, 46) “You should never
speak in front of a patient in a language they cannot understand. This
could confuse and scare the patient. You might also want to learn some
common phrases in a resident’s native language.”(Hartman, 60) Even
though you took Spanish in middle school and four years of French in
high school, I can almost bet that you do not remember half of what
was taught to you. It is ok though, it is not your requirement to be
literate in every patients language or every patients culture for that
matter, but you should take the time to learn a few common words,
more so in Spanish, so that you will not be completely clueless when
handling a patient that does not speak English.

A few years back I held an interview with Ms. Susan. (moms old
friend from work) I asked her a few questions about communication
between patients and nurses and she pretty much told me the same
things that I have mentioned. There was one subject that she touched
on though that I did not think to include. You have never had a bad
temper Tenesia, but I do know that at certain times during the day it
does not take much to aggravate you. Ms. Susan informed me that you
can not let your emotions (of any kind) get involved when caring for a
patient. “You may deal with a patient with Alzheimer's and they will not
realize that you have done nothing wrong and they might just curse
you out. You can not get offended by this and you must control your
anger and handle the patient accordingly. If a patient tries to hit you,
you should not hit back, ever. But you should avoid getting hit.”(Sacks)

Second to your relationship with your patients should be your

relationship with the patients family. You will have to prove to the
families that you are trustworthy so that they will be comfortable
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leaving their loved one in your care. A way to gain trust from the
patient’s family is to properly communicate with them about the health
and care of their relative. “A trusting relationship with patients and
their families is built on open, honest communication.” (“American
Hospital Association”) During your career you will find reasons why this
is hard to achieve and that is something you will have to overcome.
Communication will not always be easy, so you will have to work hard
in order to get your job done properly. A lot of nurses in many different
places do not have access to the resources needed to properly
communicate with their patients.” (Dare)

Tenesia I wish you much luck on finding a job and I know you will be a
great nurse. Remember what you have learned throughout school and
keep in mind what I have taught you in this letter and you will have no
problems. However, you must remember that everyone makes minor
mistakes and you have to be able to learn from them and learn from
your patients. I will be writing soon to see how the job search turned
out!

Sincerely yours,

Tenesia Sealey

Works Cited

“Communicating with Patients.” American Hospital Association. N.p. , 2006-2011.

Web. 22 March 2011.

Dare, Frances. “How Nurses Communicate.” Cisco Blog. Inc. 12 05 2009. Web. 27

March 2011.
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Fuzy, Jetta, RN, MS. Hartman’s Nursing Assistant Care: The Basics. 3rd ed.

Albacoreque, NM: Hartman Publishing, Inc. , 2010. Print.

Hartman citation not here.

Sacks, Susan . Personal Interview. April 2 2011.

Sheldon, Lisa. Communication for Nurses: Talking with Patients. 2nd ed. Sudbury, MA:

Jones and Bartlett Publishers, 2009. Print.

Tenesia,

What a great idea to do a letter to your future self! You should print it out and keep it
somewhere you can revisit it in 10 years to see what you think then!

I like the way you approach this topic and the kinds of information you notes as
important for your future-nurse self to remember. It seems like you are very aware of the
importance of communication in your field. I offer some revision suggestions in the
margins. One of the most important ones is to introduce all your quotes. Revisit “The Art
of Quoting” handout on Moodle to remind yourself about “the quotation sandwich”! Let
me know your thoughts in a talk back.