COMMUNICATION PATTERNS OF CRITICAL CARE NURSES.
Contributors: Rutgers University.
Published: 1993
Number of pages: 193
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.; Education, Health.; Health Sciences, Education.
Description: Problem. Health education, considered an essential part of professional nursing practice, informs clients of a variety of means to strengthen their ability to achieve their maximum health potential. Using effective communication will increase the quality of care. The problem addressed deals with a lack of research based understanding of communication patterns of critical care nurses. Examination of the nurse-client interaction in a situation where the client is initially almost totally dependent, physically and emotionally, with varying degrees of dependency throughout their illness makes this an important research situation. In addition this study seeks to understand how patterns related to power and struggle for autonomy influence patterns of communication.

Research questions. (1) How are the principles of Rogers theory identified in the critical care unit? (2) Using Transactional Analysis theory for the purpose of coding transactions, how frequently does the nurse, client, other use parent, child or adult cues in their interactions? (3) Does the perception of power influence the type of interaction, verbal cues, and non-verbal behavior? (4) Does one communication pattern in a given situation influence or predict the patterns in subsequent situations?.

Method. Ethnographic research utilized the participant's inner world, the critical care unit. The researcher functioned as participant-observer gathering descriptive general observations, moving towards focused, and then to specific observations. A fieldwork journal contained condensed and then expanded accounts of interactions, non-verbal behaviors, interviews, and situational specifics. Analysis of data included domain analysis, focused observations, taxonomic analysis, and discovered cultural themes.

Significance. Two common patterns were observed in the critical care unit: Adult-Adult and Parent-Child. The former occurred with information exchange and education while the latter maintained the dependent role of the less powerful. Doctors and Administrators expressed power through MD-RN and Administration-RN relationships while nurses expressed power in the RN-Patient and RN-Family relationships. Leading Language and Parental Behavior were identified language patterns in the field. Movement of nurse-communication towards adult patterning enhances the educative relationship and empowers health care team to effect change towards the client's maximum health potential.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 54-04, Section: B, page: 1888.

Thesis (ED.D.)--RUTGERS THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW JERSEY - NEW BRUNSWICK, 1993.

School code: 0190.