(What To Do!)Intercultural Communication the Nurse-Client Relationship

The use of effective intercultural communication through patience, sensitivity, verbal and non-verbal communication, touch and facial expressions were illustrated as being important factors in developing a therapeutic nurse-client relationship.

During WHAT TO DO the health care workers exhibited a cultural sensitive approach toward their client through verbal and non-verbal carative gestures. The healthcare workers were very accommodating, which helped to facilitate the understanding of the conflicting position that the Nigerian client was facing. A study conducted by Duggan & Parrot (2001) illustrated that clients disclosed more about their illness beliefs and emotions when their physicians use more non-verbal communication associated with good rapport.
During our video-enactment, one of the most obvious forms of nonverbal intercultural communication was to observe the expression of emotion on the face of the client. The display of emotion is universal and is an indication of pain, anger, sadness, happiness and calmness, which was indicated in the video.

Acquiring cultural knowledge begins with the recognition that behaviours and responses that are viewed one way in one cultural context may be viewed in another way, or have a different meaning, in another cultural context.

Clients Rituals and Customs: Talk about how Blessing had different rituals and customs

Family and Social Relationships: (e.g., roles of family members in decision-making and caregiving)

Decision-Making on consent to treatment: Sharing information versus clients being shielded by family and having decisions made for them

Communication Norms: What does your body language say about you? How might a client from another culture interpret your posture, eye contact and the tone of your voice? Could your body language be communicating something different from your words?