Emotional Intelligence in Health Care Nursing Essay Example

Communication is complex and is much more than the capability to speak and process words. It requires a deeper understanding of human interactions and behaviors, and the thoughtful consideration of both verbal and non-verbal cues. The ability to dissect the latter is a vital component in collaboration in nursing and requires adept emotional intelligence because humans dedicate a greater portion of time expressing themselves “through nonverbal communication” (Fearrington, 2020, pg. 259). The development of exceptional communication skills, as well as emotional intelligence facilities the ability for a nurse to interact competently with both patients and members of the healthcare team. 

According to Fearrington (2020), to achieve optimal patient care, a nurse must possess proficient communication and interpersonal skills. As proven by the Joint Commission, when these skills are found to be lacking in the clinical setting, patients have a higher potential to suffer significant consequences. After a thorough investigation of incidents between 2004 and 2015, the Joint Commission had revealed: “errors in communication were a frequent root cause” (Codier & Codier, 2017, pg 1). A severe potential barrier to communication is a lack of emotional intelligence, especially in incidents of incongruent communication. When a nurse faces incongruent communication, they must be able to utilize the experience and their knowledge of emotional intelligence to sort through the conflicting messages between verbal and non-verbal cues. Once decoded, it is the nurse’s professional responsibility and compassionate regard for their patient to assist appropriately. This interpretation must be addressed with care and precision. A nurse with less practice in emotional intelligence may miss subtle cues exhibited by the patient and react inappropriately to their actual needs (Fearrington, 2020, pg. 266). The understanding of a patient’s emotional needs permits for the proper interventions and actions to be implemented by the nurse, thus improving patient outcomes and clinical nursing performances. This relationship suggests nurses with superior emotional intelligence provide safer and more individualized patient care than those with inferior emotional intelligence (Codier & Codier, 2017, pg 2). 

Emotional Intelligence is not only important to utilize with patients to improve patient care, but also your fellow medical care team. When nurses are adept at emotional intelligence, they have an enhanced understanding of others’ emotions as well as possess greater emotional management skills over their own. When nurses demonstrate these essential skills, they can “provide situational awareness and stability” in emotionally charged encounters with peers in the workplace (Meires, 2018, pg 1). The ability to understand and address negative emotions non-confrontationally and appropriately encourages nurses to combat behaviors associated with bullying in the professional setting. It also permits acknowledgment of the necessary changes required to construct a healthier work environment and promote civility between healthcare professionals despite frustrations. The need to curb bullying and incivility is a critical issue to address because it “is linked to increased patient care errors” and “preventable adverse events” related to communication failures (Meires, 2018, pg 1). When nurses and other health care professionals practice emotional intelligence, they can increase collaboration to achieve optimal patient outcomes together. 

Emotional intelligence is an essential component in maintaining proper and safe patient care. It is not only a valuable skill set when interacting with patients, but also when dealing with fellow nurses and other medical professionals in the clinical setting. Practicing emotional intelligence enhances interpersonal skills and collaboration between team members and maximizes patient outcomes and satisfaction in the overall health care experience.