How to Reduce Conflict In Home Health Nursing

Home health nursing is a specialty field in the health care industry. Registered nurses provide health services to patients in the comfort of their own homes. The home nurses also play a supervisory role by delegating various tasks to home health aides working in the home with the patient. Conflicts in a home health nursing environment stem from conflicting interests between the various parties involved including the nurse, the patient and the patients' family. These conflicts can be reduced with proper communication, cooperation and education on the role that each person plays in serving the best interest of the patient.

Instructions

• 1

  Reduce conflicts by discussing the need for interpersonal communication between the nurse, health care aide, the patient and their family. Nurses and health aides need to be actively engaged with the patient and their family.

• 2

  Consult with both the patient and their family, before offering any help -- or providing any new services to the patient. For instance, conflicts can arise when the nurse and aide make changes in the medication, or the daily schedule at the home, and fail to inform the patient and family ahead of time.

• 3

  Encourage appropriate discourse between all parties involved, by allowing feedback from the patient and family members. Arrange weekly or monthly meetings with the caregivers, the patient and their family, to give the family an opportunity to offer their views. This gives all the parties involved the opportunity to engage in meaningful conflict resolution.

• 4

  Educate the patient and family members on the role that the nurse and the home health aide play in making health-care decisions and caring for the patient. Both the patients, and their family need to be informed of the responsibilities of the nurses in making major decisions -- based on the role they play as a health professional.

• 5

  Facilitate and encourage cooperation between all parties involved in caring for the patient. Conflict often arises when family members assume they are more knowledgeable than the health care professionals. These conflicts can be reduced, by encouraging cooperation between each person involved.