Study Guide for Fundamentals of Nursing Care: Concepts, Connections & Skills - Communication and Relationships Related

Review Study Guide for Fundamentals of Nursing Care: Concepts, Connections & Skills - Communication and Relationships related questions and content

A patient on your unit is very angry and hard to care for. She frequently belittles her caretakers. You have taken care of her for 2 days and ask the nurse manager to assign the patient to someone else. The nurse manager does as you ask, but the nurse she chooses comes to you and says, 'This isn't fair at all! She is your patient, and you are dumping her on me!' Which of the following alternatives is the best way to begin to resolve this conflict?

  • A. Go back to the nurse manager and ask her to smooth things out.
  • B. Tell the nurse privately that you needed an emotional break from the patient.
  • C. Apologize to the nurse, take the patient back, and give the nurse one of the patients that had been assigned to you.
  • D. Suggest that the nurse has not had the patient in a while and that it is her turn.
Correct Answer: B

Rationale: Explaining the need for an emotional break fosters understanding and opens a constructive dialogue to resolve the conflict.