How to be More Empathetic as a Nurse

by Amanda M. Part-time Writer and Blogger

Nurses are caregivers who spend their days looking after patients and attending to their every need. If you wish to become a nurse in Canada, you should be prepared to interact with possibly hundreds of people from different cultural and ethnic backgrounds every day. You may not be able to forge an instant connection with all of them, but having empathy will allow you to understand your patients better and give them the support they need at a critical time in their life when they are fighting disease or hospitalized for a major surgical procedure.

If you have not yet entered the nursing profession but wish to become a nurse in Canada, you can sign up for the best NCLEX review course at a leading nursing review centre near you.

If you have decided to pursue nursing as a career, here is how you can be more empathetic towards your patients.

What is empathy?

Empathy is defined as the ability to intellectually and emotionally understand the point of view of another person. We practice empathy when we take the time to be considerate towards another human being and understand their psychological experience of a situation without having experienced the same situation ourselves.

Why should nurses have empathy?

Nursing is probably one of the foremost professions where empathy is counted as a professional skill. Empathetic nurses make their patients feel like they are being listened to and not dismissed or treated like they have no knowledge about their medical condition.

Being a registered nurse means that you should be able to provide individualized and quality care to each of your patients. This is a real skill because nurses see dozens of patients a day, if not more. By treating your patients with empathy, you build a relationship of mutual trust with them. This helps them place their faith in you and comply with their treatment.

How nurses can practice empathy with patients

· Listen to your patients. This means not being dismissive of questions or concerns that the patient may have but actually listening to them and responding to their questions. Try to put yourself in their shoes and imagine what it must feel like to be in a strange environment when you don’t have the medical knowledge to fully understand what’s wrong with you.

· Make eye contact. For most people, making eye contact with a stranger is something that makes them feel awkward. However, being a registered nurse means that you need to make eye contact with your patient instead of looking away from them while talking to them.

· Pay attention to non-verbal cues. If a patient says they feel fine, but their body language suggests otherwise, you should pick up on it. For example, are they avoiding eye contact, shifting uncomfortably, or looking nervous or worried? You should make your patients feel like you are always there for them and would like to put them at ease when they feel anxious.

The effect of empathy on patients under medical supervision

As a nurse, you must understand that a hospital is a strange place for patients to be in, one they would like to leave as soon as possible to be with their family at home. As such, part of your job is to make their stay as comfortable for them as possible.

According to a study on client experience, patients ranked empathy higher than pain management medication, hospital room environment, or outcomes of care as things that contribute to patient satisfaction. Patients are more likely to view their hospital visit favorably if they feel like they were treated with empathy.

Prepare for your nursing examinations at a leading nursing review centre in Toronto, Ontario

If you have completed your university education and wish to become a nurse in Canada, you will need to take the NCLEX examination to become a Registered Nurse (RN).

The experts at Modern Tech Review Center can help you study for the exam. As a leading nursing review centre, they are known for offering the best NCLEX review course in the city and employing the most effective exam preparation strategies. Their practice tests provide aspiring nurses with the best NCLEX study plan. With their guidance, you’ll be ready to take the NCLEX-RN exams in Canada. Students taking the application for REx-PN in Canada can sign up with them as well. Get in touch with them to learn more about their exam preparation services and workshops.

About the Author:

The author of this post is a regular contributor to Modern Tech Nursing’s website. She has been associated with the nursing profession for over ten years.