Helping nurses deal with daily conflicts in a workplace setting: the role of Effective Communication.

Abstract

This study seeks to determine how nurses who work or have worked in Ireland and Brazil manage day-to-day conflicts in healthcare institutions, as well as their knowledge and skills in implementing effective communication as a form of conflict resolution. A mixed-methods approach (qualitative and quantitative) was utilized in an open and closed-ended questionnaire in which nurses were able to respond to 18 questions, 4 of which provided space for participants to give more detailed account of their knowledge/experience. The data analysis was conducted in two stages, the first of which consisted of exploring the results of the quantitative data which is presented in graphs and tables. The second stage is a deductive/inductive analysis (Saunders et al., 2007) of the qualitative data derived from participant responses to the open-ended questions. It was found that effective communication is a significant work tool for nurses when applied to conflict resolution as it promotes a professional environment, as related to teamwork, humanization of patient care, patient safety, and the continuity of high-quality treatment. Analysis of the data indicates that there is an urgent need for the continued education of nurses and the multidisciplinary team on the use of effective communication and conflict management, to best prepare professionals if conflict were to arise with team members and/or with patients and their family members