Course Description
This course will introduce students to communication within the context of the nurse-client relationship. Therapeutic communication skills will include warmth, respect, genuineness, empathy, use of silence and assertiveness. Students will focus on developing self-awareness and therapeutic use of self. Major course concepts include: confidentiality, self awareness, boundaries, and introduction to the Mental Status Exam.
Course Content
The communication will be introduced through:
- Understanding the phases of the nurse-client relationship
- Understanding and demonstration of core therapeutic conditions of warmth, respect, genuineness and empathy
- Understanding the strategies of open and closed questions, normalization, shame attenuation, paraphrasing and summarizing
- Understanding the skill of using silence as a therapeutic tool
- Understanding and demonstration of assertive and responsible communication
- Understanding self-awareness and the relationship to therapeutic communication
- Understanding the concepts of confidentiality, professional boundaries and providing feedback
- Introduction of the Mental Status Exam
Methods Of Instruction
Experiential communication formats are used; including, interactive communication scenarios, video critiquing and participative self-awareness exercises.
Means of Assessment
The course evaluation is consistent with Douglas College evaluation policy. An evaluation schedule is presented at the beginning of the course.
This is a graded course.
Learning Outcomes
Students will learn the core therapeutic conditions of warmth, respect, genuineness, empathy and concreteness with a focus on building self-awareness of their own communication styles, therapeutic use of self and understanding the client experience.
Textbook Materials
A list of required and optional textbooks and materials is provided for students at the beginning of each semester.