Factors Affecting Health and Illness

Physical Dimension

Genetic make-up, age, developmental level, race and sex are all part of an individual’s
physical dimension and strongly influence health status and health practices.

Examples:

a. The toddler just learning to walk is prone to fail and injure himself.

b. The young woman who has a family history of breast cancer and diabetes and
therefore is at a higher risk to develop these conditions.

Emotional Dimension

How the mind and body interact to affect body function and to respond to body
conditions also influences health. Long term stress affects the body systems and
anxiety affects health habits; conversely, calm acceptance and relaxation can actually
change body responses to illness.

Examples:

a. Prior to a test, a student always has diarrhea.

b. Extremely nervous about a surgery, a man experiences severe pain following his
operation.

c. Using relaxation techniques, a young woman reduces her pain during the delivery
of her baby.

Intellectual Dimension

The intellectual dimension encompasses cognitive abilities, educational background

and past experiences. These influence a client’s responses to teaching about health
and reactions to health care during illness. They also play a major role in health
behaviors.

Examples:

a. An elderly woman who has only a third-grade education who needs teaching about
a complicated diagnostic test.

b. A young college student with diabetes who follows a diabetic diet but continues to
drink beer and eat pizza with friends several times a week.

Environmental Dimension
The environment has many influences on health and illness. Housing, sanitation,
climate and pollution of air, food and water are aspects of environmental dimension.

Examples:

a. Increased incidence of asthma and respiratory problems in large cities with smog.

Socio-cultural Dimension

Health practices and beliefs are strongly influenced by a person’s economic level,
lifestyle, family and culture. Low-income groups are less likely to seek health care to
prevent or treat illness; high-income groups are more prone to stress-related habits
and illness. The family and the culture to which the person belongs determine patterns
of livings and values, about health and illness that are often unalterable.

Examples:

a. The adolescent who sees nothing wrong with smoking or drinking because his
parents smoke and drink.

b. The person of Asian descent who uses herbal remedies and acupuncture to treat an
illness.

Spiritual Dimension

Spiritual and religious beliefs are important components of the way the person
behaves in health and illness.

Examples:

a. Roman Catholics require baptism for both live births and stillborn babies.

b. Jehovah Witnesses’ are opposed to blood transfusions.

 Three Phases of Nurse-Client
Relationship

Nurse-Client Relationship – the nurse and the client work

together to assist client to grow and solve his problems. This
relationship exists for the benefit of the client so that it is
important that at every interaction, the nurse uses self
therapeutically. This is achieved by maintaining the nurses’ self-awareness to prevent
her unrecognized needs from influencing her perception of and behavior towards the
client.

Three Phases of Nurse-Client Relationship:

1. Orientation Stage

• Establishing therapeutic environment.

• The roles, goals, rules and limitations of the relationship are defined, nurse
gains trust of the client, and the mode of communication are acceptable for
both nurse and patient is set.
o Acceptance is the foundation of all therapeutic relationship
o Acceptance of others requires acceptance of self first.

• Rapport is built by demonstrating acceptance and non-judgmental attitude.

• Acceptance of patient means encouraging the patient verbally and non-
verbally to express both positive and negative feelings even if these are
divergent from accepted norms and general viewpoint.
o The nurse can encourage the client to share his/her feelings by making
the client understand that no feeling is wrong.

• Trust of patient is gained by being consistent.

• Assessment of the client is made by obtaining data from primary and

secondary sources.

• The patient set the pace of the relationship.

• During this phase, the problems are not yet been resolved but the client’s
feelings especially anxiety is reduced, by using palliative measures, to enable
the client to relax enough to talk about his distressing feelings and thoughts.

• This stage progresses well when the nurses show empathy provide support to
client and temporary structure until the client can control his own feelings and
behavior.
o Reality testing – is accepting the patient’s perceptions, feelings and
thoughts as neither right nor wrong, but at the same time offering other
options or points of view to the client in a non-argumentative manner
 for the purpose of helping the client arrive at more realistic
conclusions.
o To provide structure is to intervene when the client loses control of his
own feelings and behaviors by medications, offering self, restrain,
seclusion and by assisting client to observe a consistent daily schedule.

2. Working/ Exploration/ Identification Stage – at this point, the client’s problems

are identified and solutions are explored, applied and evaluated.

• The focus of the assessment and of the relationship is the client’s behavior and
the focus of the interaction is the client’s feelings.
• The nurse should realize that the client’s feelings of security are developed by
being consistent at all times.
• Perception of reality, coping mechanisms and support systems are identified.
• The nurse assists the patient to develop coping skills, positive self concept and
independence in order to change the behavior of the client to one that is
adaptive and appropriate.
o The nurse uses the techniques of communication and assumes
different roles to help the client.

3. Termination/ Resolution stage

• the nurse terminates the relationship when the mutually agreed goals are met,
the patient is discharged or transferred or the rotation is finished. The focus of
this stage is the growth that has occurred in the client and the nurse helps the
patient to become independent and responsible in making his own decisions.
The relationship and the growth or change that has occurred in both the nurse
and the patient is summarized.

• Client may become anxious and react with increased dependence, hostility and
withdrawal, these are normal reactions and are signs of separation anxiety,
these feelings and behavior should be discussed with the client.

• The nurse should be firm in maintaining professionalism until the end of the
relationship. She should not promise the client that the relationship will be
continued.

• The time parameters should be made early in the relationship and meetings are
set further and further apart near the end to foster independence of the patient
and prepare the latter gradually for the separation.
• The nurse should not give her address or telephone numbers to the patient.
• Referral for continuing health care and support after discharge provides
additional resources for the client and the family.
• The goal of the therapeutic relationship have been met when the patient has
developed emotional stability, cope positively, recognized sources or causes of
anxiety, demonstrates ability to handle anxiety and independence, and is able
to perform self-care.
o Preparation of the termination phase begins at the orientation phase,
when the duration and length of the nurse-client relationship was
established.
 o • It is normal for the client to experience
separation anxiety such as sleeplessness,
anorexia, physical symptoms, withdrawal and
hostility.

Therapeutic Relationship
Therapeutic relationship – is a relationship that is established
between a health care professional and a client for the purpose
of assisting the client to solve his problems.

1. Empathy
o the nurse should be able to perceive and experience the feelings of the
patient to be able to understand the patient.

• Empathy is therapeutic but sympathy is not therapeutic because

sympathy is pity.

• Sympathy leads the patient to develop a “poor me” self

concept.

2. Genuineness

o this is manifested when the nurse is sincere and honest in her

relationship with the patient. Consistency conveys sincerity that in turn
foster the development of the patient’s trust. The nurse must maintain
an honest and open communication.

3. Concreteness and specificity

o this pertains to the nurse’s ability to identify the client’s feelings and
make the client be aware of them. Only when the nurse listens actively
and is sensitive enough can she help the patient to gain awareness and
insight regarding the latter’s feelings, thought and behaviors in relation
to situations and person’s to the patients life in the past and in the
present.

4. Respect

o the nurse considers the patient, like any other human being with
dignity, to be deserving of high regard. This is manifested when the
nurse does not belittle or judge the patient’s feelings, verbalizations
and behaviors.

o Respect is shown when the nurse realizes that several patients may
have the same diagnosis but their individuality sets them apart and
different from each other. As such, the nurse approach must be
appropriate for each patient. Respect can be shown by being consistent
yet flexible when the circumstance warrants being so.
 *Transference – occurs when the client transfers conflict/ feelings from
the past to the nurse. Ex. Client becomes overly dependent to the nurse
because client may transfer the maternal longings to the nurse.

* Counter-transference – when nurse responds to the client emotionally

on a personal level. When the nurse begins to react to the patient personal
level, often unaware of it and may lose her objectivity. The nurse should
discuss with the other members of the health team any negative or strong
feeling she has developed towards the client so she can be helped to
maintain her focus and perspective.

5. Immediacy of relationship

o this refers to the nurse’s ability to recognize her own feelings as she
deals and communicate with the patient. It also refers to the ability to
realize when it is appropriate to share them with the patient.

6. Self-exploration

o it is necessary that the nurse makes the patient realize the necessity of
the patient exploring, identifying and understanding his own feelings
and thought to be able to understand himself better, and find
appropriate solutions to his problems.

7. Self – disclosure

o the nurse willingness to share her own points of view in a therapeutic

manner can be an indication of genuineness, this encourages the
patient to become more open to the nurse in return.

8. Confrontation

o patients sometimes behave inappropriately because they perceive the

environment unrealistically. It could also be due to excessive use of
defense mechanisms. These in appropriate behaviors and unrealistic
perceptions can be corrected by the nurse by pointing out the patient in
a matter of fact and non-judgmental manner, the inconsistencies and
discrepancies in the patients behaviors, perceptions, verbalizations and
feelings. The nurse also set limits on the patients behavior.

Therapeutic and Non-Therapeutic Communication

Quick Checklist for Effective Communication: (1) Open ended questions (2) Focus
on feelings (3) State behaviors observed (4) Reflect, restate, rephrase verbalization of
patient (5) Neutral responses
Effective Communication: (1) Appropriate (2) Simple (3) Adaptive (4) Concise (5)
Credible

Therapeutic Technique

1. Offering Self

• making self-available and showing interest and concern.

• “I will walk with you”

2. Active listening

• paying close attention to what the patient is saying by observing both verbal
and non-verbal cues.
• Maintaining eye contact and making verbal remarks to clarify and encourage
further communication.

3. Exploring

• “Tell me more about your son”

4. Giving broad openings

• What do you want to talk about today?

5. Silence

• Planned absence of verbal remarks to allow patient and nurse to think over
what is being discussed and to say more.

6. Stating the observed

• verbalizing what is observed in the patient to, for validation and to encourage
discussion
• “You sound angry”

7. Encouraging comparisons

• • asking to describe similarities and differences among feelings, behaviors, and

events.
• • “Can you tell me what makes you more comfortable, working by yourself or
working as a member of a team?”

8. Identifying themes

• asking to identify recurring thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

• “When do you always feel the need to check the locks and doors?”

9. Summarizing
 • reviewing the main points of discussions and making appropriate conclusions.
• “During this meeting, we discussed about what you will do when you feel the
urge to hurt your self again and this include…”

10. Placing the event in time or sequence

• asking for relationship among events.

• “When do you begin to experience this ticks? Before or after you entered
grade school?”

11. Voicing doubt

• voicing uncertainty about the reality of patient’s statements, perceptions and

conclusions.
• “I find it hard to believe…”

12. Encouraging descriptions of perceptions

• asking the patients to describe feelings, perceptions and views of their

situations.
• “What are these voices telling you to do?”

13. Presenting reality or confronting

• stating what is real and what is not without arguing with the patient.
• “I know you hear these voices but I do not hear them”.
• “I am Lhynnelli, your nurse, and this is a hospital and not a beach resort.

14. Seeking clarification

• asking patient to restate, elaborate, or give examples of ideas or feelings to

seek clarification of what is unclear.
• “I am not familiar with your work, can you describe it further for me”.
• “I don’t think I understand what you are saying”.

15. Verbalizing the implied

• rephrasing patient’s words to highlight an underlying message to clarify

statements.
• Patient: I wont be bothering you anymore soon.
• Nurse: Are you thinking of killing yourself?

16. Reflecting

• throwing back the patient’s statement in a form of question helps the patient
identify feelings.
• Patient: I think I should leave now.
• Nurse: Do you think you should leave now?

17. Restating
 • repeating the exact words of patients to remind them of what they said and to
let them know they are heard.
• Patient: I can’t sleep. I stay awake all night.
• Nurse: You can’t sleep at night?

18. General leads

• using neutral expressions to encourage patients to continue talking.

• “Go on…”
• “You were saying…”

19. Asking question

• using open-ended questions to achieve relevance and depth in discussion.

• “How did you feel when the doctor told you that you are ready for discharge
soon?”

20. Empathy

• recognizing and acknowledging patient’s feelings.

• “It’s hard to begin to live alone when you have been married for more than
thirty years”.

21. Focusing

• pursuing a topic until its meaning or importance is clear.

• “Let us talk more about your best friend in college”
• “You were saying…”

22. Interpreting

• providing a view of the meaning or importance of something.

• Patient: I always take this towel wherever I go.
• Nurse: That towel must always be with you.

23. Encouraging evaluation

• asking for patients views of the meaning or importance of something.

• “What do you think led the court to commit you here?”
• “Can you tell me the reasons you don’t want to be discharged?

24. Suggesting collaboration

• offering to help patients solve problems.

• “Perhaps you can discuss this with your children so they will know how you
feel and what you want”.

25. Encouraging goal setting

• asking patient to decide on the type of change needed.

 • “What do you think about the things you have to change in your self?”

26. Encouraging formulation of a plan of action

• probing for step by step actions that will be needed.

• “If you decide to leave home when your husband beat you again what will you
do next?”

27. Encouraging decisions

• asking patients to make a choice among options.

• “Given all these choices, what would you prefer to do.

28. Encouraging consideration of options

• asking patients to consider the pros and cons of possible options.

• “Have you thought of the possible effects of your decision to you and your
family?”

29. Giving information

• providing information that will help patients make better choices.

• “Nobody deserves to be beaten and there are people who can help and places
to go when you do not feel safe at home anymore”.

30. Limit setting

• discouraging nonproductive feelings and behaviors, and encouraging

productive ones.
• “Please stop now. If you don’t, I will ask you to leave the group and go to
your room.

31. Supportive confrontation

• acknowledging the difficulty in changing, but pushing for action.

• “I understand. You feel rejected when your children sent you here but if you
look at this way…”

32. Role playing

• practicing behaviors for specific situations, both the nurse and patient play
particular role.
• “I’ll play your mother, tell me exactly what would you say when we meet on
Sunday”.

33. Rehearsing

• asking the patient for a verbal description of what will be said or done in a
particular situation.
 • “Supposing you meet these people again, how would you respond to them
when they ask you to join them for a drink?”.

34. Feedback

• pointing out specific behaviors and giving impressions of reactions.

• “I see you combed your hair today”.

35. Encouraging evaluation

• asking patients to evaluate their actions and their outcomes.

• “What did you feel after participating in the group therapy?”.

36. Reinforcement

• giving feedback on positive behaviors.

• “Everyone was able to give their options when we talked one by one and each
of waited patiently for our turn to speak”.

Avoid pitfalls:

1. Giving advise
2. Talking about your self
3. Telling client is wrong
4. Entering into hallucinations and delusions of client
5. False reassurance
6. Cliché
7. Giving approval
8. Asking WHY?
9. Changing subject
10. Defending doctors and other health team members.

Non-therapeutic Technique

1. Overloading

• talking rapidly, changing subjects too often, and asking for more information
than can be absorbed at one time.
• “What’s your name? I see you like sports. Where do you live?”

2. Value Judgments

• giving one’s own opinion, evaluating, moralizing or implying one’s values by

using words such as “nice”, “bad”, “right”, “wrong”, “should” and “ought”.
• “You shouldn’t do that, its wrong”.

3. Incongruence

• sending verbal and non-verbal messages that contradict one another.

 • The nurse tells the patient “I’d like to spend time with you” and then walks
away.

4. Underloading

• remaining silent and unresponsive, not picking up cues, and failing to give
feedback.
• The patient ask the nurse, simply walks away.

5. False reassurance/ agreement

• Using cliché to reassure client.

• “It’s going to be alright”.

6. Invalidation

• Ignoring or denying another’s presence, thought’s or feelings.

• Client: How are you?
• Nurse responds: I can’t talk now. I’m too busy.

7. Focusing on self

• responding in a way that focuses attention to the nurse instead of the client.
• “This sunshine is good for my roses. I have beautiful rose garden”.

8. Changing the subject

• introducing new topic

• inappropriately, a pattern that may indicate anxiety.
• The client is crying, when the nurse asks “How many children do you have?”

9. Giving advice

• telling the client what to do, giving opinions or making decisions for the
client, implies client cannot handle his or her own life decisions and that the
nurse is accepting responsibility.
• “If I were you… Or it would be better if you do it this way…”

10. Internal validation

• making an assumption about the meaning of someone else’s behavior that is

not validated by the other person (jumping into conclusion).
• The nurse sees a suicidal clients smiling and tells another nurse the patient is
in good mood.

Other ineffective behaviors and responses:

1. Defending – Your doctor is very good.

2. Requesting an explanation – Why did you do that?
3. Reflecting – You are not suppose to talk like that!
4. Literal responses – If you feel empty then you should eat more.
5. Looking too busy.
6. Appearing uncomfortable in silence.
7. Being opinionated.
8. Avoiding sensitive topics
9. Arguing and telling the client is wrong
10. Having a closed posture-crossing arms on chest
11. Making false promises – I’ll make sure to call you when you get home.
12. Ignoring the patient – I can’t talk to you right now
13. Making sarcastic remarks
14. Laughing nervously
15. Showing disapproval – You should not do those things.