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Therapeutic Use of Self
Therapeutic Use of Self One of the nursing concepts that are essential to the delivery of compassionate, supportive and comforting care is the therapeutic use of the self. According to Patel and Jakopac (2011), the therapeutic use of the self concerns the conscious application of own personality and empathy to create a positive nurse-patient relationship and provide an environment suitable to the essential nursing interventions. The three major attributes of the therapeutic use of the self are personal knowing, empathy and therapeutic communication. Personal knowing is realized through confidence and self-awareness, which allow the nurse to engage in personal reflection, effective perception of own feelings and prejudices in a situation, and the recognition and reconciliation of own experiences with those of the patient (Stein-Parbury, 2017). Empathy is attained when the nurse places herself in the patient’s situation in order to understand clearly what the patient is experiencing. Therapeutic communication is realized through verbal and non-verbal communication and active listening, which help the patient to develop trust, confidence and security in the healthcare provider.
One antecedent of the therapeutic use of the self is self-awareness. Both the nurse and patient should know their feelings, values, beliefs, attitudes, fears and expectations. On the other hand, one consequence of the therapeutic use of the self is the shift in the nursing practice from doing to a patient to being with the patient. One of the empirical elements that demonstrate the occurrence of the therapeutic use of the self is a trusting nurse-patient relationship. The concept of the therapeutic use of self is central in Peplau’s Interpers./………………………
