When working with a patient, it is necessary to make sure that they receive proper care, and all efforts are aimed at making their state better. However, a patient may look good, there can be no signs or symptoms of their disease left, but there may still be something that bothers them and prevent from recovering completely. Therefore, it is essential for the medical provider to take care of the patient as a whole and pay attention not only to their physical health but also emotional state. The purpose of this paper is to discuss holistic care as one of the most important approaches in healthcare.
To begin with, it is necessary to define holistic care. Nurses who implement this approach do not see their patients as collections of specific symptoms that need to be addressed. On the contrary, holistic care is about studying all aspects of life, including mental, physical, spiritual, and social requirements and needs (Thomson, 2020). It is necessary to understand that if a patient has severe headaches, the cause cannot always be determined with medical tests or other examinations. The problem may lie in the person’s stress and anxiety, in recent events they had to face, or in the fact that they have no friends and relatives, and their social needs are unaddressed. Thus, to treat this patient successfully, the nurse has to learn some details about their life and determine how some problems may undermine the overall health.
There are many ways one can implement a holistic nursing approach to care and facilitate healing. For example, it is recommended for medical providers to smile, laugh, and be simultaneously friendly and professional when talking to their patients. Further, a nurse may indicate their sincere interest in the patient’s personal life, and it is especially useful with children and the elderly. Then, one of the ways to implement a holistic care approach is to ask about the client’s mood, wellbeing, and thoughts. Finally, it is effective to teach and educate the patients about taking responsibility for their own care.
Reference
Thomson, L. (2020). The essence of mind-body-spirit medicine and holistic care. JOJ Nursing & Health Care, 11(4), 84-85.