WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION TO
BSNC 1055 COMMUNICATION IN
NURSING PRACTICE 1
Copyright © 2014 Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Chapter 1: How to Nurse
An Introduction to Relational Inquiry
in Nursing Practice
Copyright © 2014 Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
CRNBC definition
An inquiry that is guided by conscious
participation with clients using a number of
relational skills including listening, questioning,
empathy, mutuality, reciprocity, selfobservation, reflection, and a sensitivity to
emotional contexts. Relational practice
encompasses therapeutic nurse-client
relationships and relationships among health
care providers (Doane & Varcoe, 2007; Sansfield
& Browne, 2013).
Copyright © 2014 Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Relational Inquiry: Two Essential Interrelated
Components
Relational
consciousness
Inquiry as a
form of action
Copyright © 2014 Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Relational Consciousness
Purposefully paying attention to the interplay between
and among people and their environments:
 Directs attention to intrapersonal, interpersonal and
contextual dimensions
 Sensitizes us to the relational complexities that affect
what happens at the point-of-care
 Directs attention toward the “relational transactions”
that occur within and among people and contexts
 Enables us to be intentional and to consciously choose
how to act in response to these complexities and
transactions
Copyright © 2014 Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Inquiry as Action
The “how to” of a relational consciousness requires:
 Knowing and not knowing
 Being curious
 Looking for what seems significant
 Examining the interrelatedness among elements,
considering the relevance of those interrelationships in
the moment to inform action toward patient, nurse,
and system well-being
Copyright © 2014 Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Relational Inquiry: Orientation
Relational
consciousness
Inquiry as a
form of action
Patient/family
well-being
Health care
system
well-being
Copyright © 2014 Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Nurse wellbeing
Individualist and Relational Views
Individualist
Relational Inquiry
• Decontextualizes people
• Views people as
independent
autonomous actors
• Emphasizes an
individual’s choices and
responsibilities
• Pays attention to people
in their contexts
• Pays attention to how an
individual’s choices and
responsibilities are
shaped by other people
and contexts
Copyright © 2014 Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins