Direct Patient Education

Introduction

Nurses hold a pivotal position in health care system as we are providing direct patient care that involves, health promotion, prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation. Patient education is an extremely important component of our job, as it empowers our patients and their families to be independent and acquire knowledge necessary for self-care. It is critical to educate our patients and their family at every opportunity possible as it improves compliance. It starts during admission and goes beyond discharge. According to Taylor, “Patient education is the process of influencing the patient’s behavior to effect changes in knowledge, attitudes, and skills needed to maintain and improve health. Research supports the fact

that educated patients experience better health and have fewer complications. This results in fewer hospitalizations in emergency department, clinic, and physician visits.” (Taylor, 2014)
Teaching provided by my nurse
I had a positive learning experience last week when I accompanied my nurse to a patient’s room for a wound change.

My nurse had a 21-year-old female patient who had developed an abscess under her left breast. It was drained, and the patient had an almost two to three-inch deep tunneling within her wound which was packed with a wet to dry dressing. I accompanied my nurse to help her with the dressing change. Patient’s mother was present in the room; however, we were unable to communicate with her due to a language barrier. Our patient was fluent in English and Spanish and hence she was our interpreter. She was going to be discharged later today and therefore my nurse wanted to educate the patient and the family regarding self-care. Before starting, my nurse explained to them the reason we were there for, and the steps involved in the dressing change. The patient was pushing my hand away and wanted us to stop as she was extremely sore at the sight. In response, my nurse was gentle, patient and empathized with her and stated that we will try to do it as fast as we can, and that deep breathing would help. She was communicating with the patient’s mother and wanted to teach her regarding the steps involved in dressing change so that it can be performed at home independently. She stressed the importance of hand washing to avoid any type of contamination that would lead to an infection. She was teaching this to the patient who further was translating the information to her mother.

She made sure that the patient and the family member understood the steps and felt confident to do it at home independently.
Why was my nurse successful?
My nurse was successful in her nursing role because her care was patient centered, empathetic and caring.

She had excellent communication skills that included listening and being receptive to patient’s concerns without being judgmental. She was ready with all the needed supplies necessary for dressing change. She provided the patient with a positive environment and empowered her and the family with the education needed for self-care. She provided an excellent education and made sure that her mother understood all the steps and felt confident to perform this task successfully at home. She also made sure that the patient went home with the needed supplies for two days. She provided them with printed resources and informed them to keep an eye for any signs and symptoms related to complications such as infection. By doing so. This reduces the changes of development of any future complications. The patient needed this information before discharge and the nurse fulfilled her role as an educator efficiently and her teaching strategies were suitable to the education level and understanding of the patient’s

family.
Skills that I need to acquire to be able to be as
successful.
My patients don’t know how many patients I have or how many call lights are blinking or how many patients have coded, they only know me through the moments that I interact with them face to face, make sure their needs are met and that they are comfortable and safe. The nurse is the primary person responsible for communicating to patient’s needs and providing care. Therefore, at every possible patient interaction, I need to find opportunities to teach and educate them. Good communication skills are vital to be successful in our various roles of nursing, including teaching. To do this, I need to have listening skills, which involves, hearing, interpreting and responding appropriately to patient’s concerns. It’s through these interpersonal skills that I can gain my patient’s trust, make them feel comfortable in the hospital environment, be heard and thereby provide patient centered care by developing therapeutic relationship with them. Patients might feel relief from symptoms, but later may experience new or worsening symptoms after discharge. Therefore, it is critical to educate them regarding various signs and symptoms related to healing process verses signs and symptoms for possible complications, what they might mean and when to call the health care provider. We also need to provide them with helpful online resources along with printed information they can refer to later, if needed.
Overall, teaching is one of the most important and lasting role that has a direct effect on our patient’s overall wellbeing during hospital stay and after discharge. To be successful in my teaching role, I need to further improve my communication and interpersonal skills and have attention to detail. I also need to understand my patient’s preferences that can help guide my choice of teachng method and materials and related resource information. This will increase successful outcome and result in patient satisfaction and wellbeing.