Therapeutic communication questions

[Ertr]

Hey, I'm going to apply NCLEX next month. I have a difficulty in therapeutic communication and management questions. Can anyone recommend a book about therapeutic communication and management. Thank you.

[HopefulGradNurse, RN]

The easiest way I can tell you to go about these style questions is to first choose the answers that are open ended. Meaning if you chose that answer to ask/tell a patient, they couldn't just respond with yes/no. You want to choose the answer that addresses the patient's feelings, while also "forcing" them to give a detailed response.

Here's an example off the top of my head:

You go into your patient's room to prepare them for surgery when the patient becomes tearful and agitated stating they do not want to proceed. Which response is MOST appropriate?

A.) "It is your right to refuse the surgery and would you like me to inform the doctor of your choice?"

B.) "Everyone gets nervous about surgery, you will be fine I promise."

C.) "You seem worried, tell me more about your concerns of surgery."

D.) "You need this surgery to be healthy, without it you will only become more sick."

Response ''C'' addresses the patient's feelings of concern about the surgery and it is an open ended response that "forces" the patient to reply with more than just Yes/No.

Response "A" does not address the patient's feelings.

Response "B" belittles the client's feelings by saying "everyone feels this way".

Response "D" ignores the patient's feelings.

Hope this helps, It may not be the best example because I just came up with it, but I feel as though it is pretty accurate as far as how these questions are written. Also remember, nurses ASSESS; so when answering these questions ask yourself which answer will cause the patient to give you more/the most information.

[Ertr]

Thank you very much