During the therapeutic relationship, patients may distort their perceptions of others. Therefore, they may relate to the nurse not on the basis of the nurse’s realistic attributes, but wholly or chiefly on the basis of interpersonal relationships existing in their environment. With the patient and nurse roles you have described above, discuss how these distorted perceptions may affect the patient’s care and the nurse-patient relationship.

Distorted perceptions among patients and their caregivers can lead to a negative patient-nurse relationship. Patients may see the nurse as someone who is not of the same social class, age, race, or sex. The misperception can be related to attractiveness and disabilities among others. Nurses need to be aware that these biases exist and work on changing them by listening to patients’ concerns without judgment and making them feel safe in discussing personal matters. In turn, nurses will have more rewarding relationships with their patients and better outcomes in their clinical care delivery.” “Nurses need to be aware that these biases exist and work on changing them by listening to patients’ concerns without judgment and making them feel safe in discussing personal matters.

These distorted perceptions may affect the patient’s care and the nurse-patient relationship by: changing how a patient perceives the nurse and then alters their care decisions (e.g., altering medication doses or discontinuing treatment); prompting them to ‘test’ their nurse with negative comments; small acts that may have little effect on the patient but can have large impact on the nurse. According to Hildegard Peplau, nursing refers to “An interpersonal process of therapeutic interactions between an individual who is sick or in need of health services and a nurse especially educated to recognize, respond to the need for help.” Thus distorted perceptions may affect this therapeutic relationship if there is no healthy relationship between the nurse and patient (Gonzalo, 2014). The primary care concept of nursing is to create a therapeutic relationship with the patient that will enhance their physical and mental wellbeing.

A successful therapeutic relationship must develop as an outgrowth of a healthy interpersonal relationship between the nurse and patient. A healthy interpersonal relationship is based on mutual trust, confidence, positive regard, and respect for each other as human beings (Roviralta‐Vilella et al., 2019). Mutual trust means that patients can be open about their feelings in spite of fear or embarrassment, because they know that their nurse will respect them enough to listen to what they say and try to understand them even when they disagree with the patient’s actions or words.

References

Angelo Gonzalo, R. (2014). Hildegard Peplau: Interpersonal Relations Theory Guide. Retrieved 12 July 2022, from https://nurseslabs.com/hildegard-peplaus-interpersonal-relations-theory/

Roviralta‐Vilella, M., Moreno‐Poyato, A. R., Rodríguez‐Nogueira, Ó., Duran‐Jordà, X., Roldán‐Merino, J. F., & MiRTCIME. CAT Working Group. (2019). Relationship between the nursing practice environment and the therapeutic relationship in acute mental health units: A cross‐sectional study. International journal of mental health nursing, 28(6), 1338-1346.