Empathy: Health Care and Patient Essay Example

How does a health care worker use empathy when establishing communication with the client in a health care setting? Good communication with the patient is a key concept within health care. The ability to motivate the client and help him overcome his circumstance is essential. To have supportive communication with a patient the nurse needs to be problem orientated, empathetic, have audience awareness, be a good listener and so much more. Good communication is as important before and after the diagnosis as during the treatment. Being empathetic is central to having good communication with a patient. Empathy is to show understanding and compassion towards the patient. Showing the patient interest and attention is a good start to a healthy and supportive relationship. But what is referred to as good communication, and how does the health worker build the best patient care relationship possible? The book, Communicating in the Health Sciences, discusses how to best communicate with someone. The Author, (Joy Higgs et al. 2008), mentions keywords like trust, body language, audience awareness, interaction, and the importance of being a supportive listener. These concepts are important to being a supportive communicator because they help build a foundation between the nurse and patient. It is important to start gaining the patient’s trust from the beginning. By gaining the patient’s trust the nurse is better able to have an open line of communication. Showing interest towards the patient by using a clear an understandable voice helps with gaining the patient’s trust. This will make the patient comfortable and more apt to accept the information being given. The patient should feel that they have the nurse’s undivided attention. By making the patient feel as though they are the nurse’s top priority the patient will be more open to tell the nurse their honest opinion on issues. It is important that the patient has a positive experience when talking to the