Listening as a Method of Addressing Psychological Distress

Aims This paper discusses the values of therapeutic listening and ways that emotional difficulties can impact palliative nurses’ abilities to provide psychological care. Background Recent literature indicates that providing psychological care can burden some healthcare professionals including nurses; who may lack the necessary competencies or organizational resources to carry out their roles. Evaluation References drawn from the databases: all EBM reviews, BRITISH NURSING INDEX, CINAHL, PSYCH INFO and MEDLINE and EMBASE are discussed. Key issues Psychological care is considered critical to providing holistic care. Yet the literature suggests engaging in such work makes emotional demands on the professionals attempting to carry it out and is associated with psychological difficulties including burnout. Conclusion Clinical supervision can help reduce the distress caused by emotionally charged situations. Thoughtful clinical supervision can also contribute to safe and effective health care. Implications for Nursing Management Nursing would benefit from understanding more about the effects on healthcare professionals of repeated exposure to emotionally charged situations and benefits that clinical supervision can offer to health care