• A Major Collaborative relationship I deal with daily at my job is with the therapy department.

Elements of this daily interaction are coordination times that are conducive, to the patient and
the meds. Providing appropriate pain management before and after therapy services helps to
ensure the patient can provide maximum effect while preforming rehab activities. Perceptions I
have that aid in communication with different ethnicities, are ensuring that I communicate in a
language and tone that is therapeutic to the Patient. Learning how to use non-verbal
communication is important in this field, knowing which cultures rely heavily on it is very
important. Understanding these groups use proxemics in the commination process helps to
understand their thought process (Kearney-Nunnery 2016).
Appreciative Inquiry is a key method in which we use to develop patient and family
engagement. The concept of this idea is “what you focus on grows. Look for problems-find
more problems. Look for strengths, find what’s best”. All in all, the goal is the focus on what is
best and to find what is best for the patient may involve multidiscipline and many
collaborations. I think that there is a perception that as a teams in an LTC setting that we don’t
work as a team but, we have many care plan meetings that greatly incorporate the patient and
their families. When facilitating collaboration, and communication between different
relationships, the goal is to make the most of each encounter and interaction so that the best
knowledge and ability of each team member are recognized and valued (Kearney-Nunnery
2016).
References
Rose Kearney-Nunnery, (2016) Advancing Your Career: concepts of professional Nursing (6th
Ed) Philadelphia, PA F.A Davis company
Module notes:4 Communicating for the profession (2018) Excelsior College

One example of a collaborative relationship I have had recently at my place of employment is with the
respiratory therapist. Recently I was in a rapid response situation and wanted to understand better why
the settings where what they where for the patients bipap and what effects they where having on
supporting the patients respiratory status. The RT was very patient in explaining to me the rational of
with IPAP and EPAP settings where the way the where due to the tidal volume, and why the FI02 was
at the percentage that it was as well. Kearney-Nunner (2016) state, “Collaboration is a complex
process that requires individuals to be willing to share information about the patient from their own
area of expertise. Each discipline that cares for the patient has its own knowledge, skills, and clinical
experiences. Respect for each other's knowledge, skills, background, and clinical decision-making is
the backbone of a positive collaborative arrangement.” (p. 106)

My perceptions of the elderly is something that I try to stay conscious of when communicating with
them. I try to speak to them instead of about them, and I speak to them respectfully. Many of my
elderly patients are alert and orient and I must not assume otherwise until I perform a full assessment.
Even if the patient is not fully oriented I speak to them respectfully and not as I would a child.
Kearney-Nunner (2016) discuss this stereotyping as, “the process of attributing characteristics to a
group of people as though all people in that group possess those features. Stereotypes lead the nurse to
make false conclusions about the patient, and if they are based on strong emotions, stereotypes can be
identified as prejudices” (p. 105).

Appreciative inquiry is a method of communication that focuses on “empowering healthcare workers to

share ideas and aspirations in order to generate change so that goals can be achieved” (Richer, et al.,
2010). This method of communication encourages employees to speak up in the workplace,
encourages change, and focuses on the positives in the given situation.

References

• Kearney-Nunnery R. (2016). Advancing your career: Concepts of professional nursing:(6th ed.

p.106) Philadelphia, PA: F.A. Davis Company
Sikes, D., Jestes, E., LeClair-Smith, C. & Yates, R. R. (2014). Using a 360 feedback evaluation
to enhance interprofessional collaboration, Nurse Leader, 13(4) 64-69.