Response to the Discussion by Tamika - Case Study Example

Discussion and reply to a discussion Response to Case Study for Week 2 In the case study provided, one recognizes an important case for effective cancer communication and it is essential that the healthcare practitioners give due respect to the demands of such situations. As focusing on the family is an integral component of nursing practice in the contemporary situation, I will look into various elements which have forced Maureen to ask the surgeon and the nursing staff to withhold the test results if is not positive news.

As Oliffe et al maintain, "Patient and healthcare provider communication is vital in cancer care and aspects of the patients' experiences provide valuable insight to what constitutes effective cancer communication." (Oliffe, Hislop, and Armstrong, 2007). In certain circumstances, the surgeon's and the nurse manager's response can be justified, although it is not the recommended practice under this situation. It is essential to develop trust and partnership with the wife of the patient for strengthening and supporting that family through expected and unexpected life events.

Therefore, it is important to help Maureen in supporting the interest of the family and she should be given right guidelines regarding cancer communication. "The family is a significant factor in the health and well-being of individuals, and promotion, maintenance and restoration of families are important to society's survival." (Registered Nurses Association of Ontario, 2006). Thus, as a nursing practitioner, I would help the wife of the patient to understand the relevance of effective cancer communication and I will collaborate with her in determining the most impeccable resolution regarding this communication.

I will convince Maureen not to rush to any futile conclusions and that we will support her in every possible way to offer the best solution to the issue. Thus, after the collaborative discussions and evaluations of the possible courses of actions and their consequences, I will help Maureen to take the right decision regarding the information being withheld from her husband. Response to the Discussion by TamikaIn her discussion of the specific case provided, Tamika makes some essential points regarding effective cancer communication to the patient and the issues related.

At the very start of the discussion, Tamika mentions the possibility of the errors in the decision of Maureen to withhold the information from the patient, while she accepts the situations leading to the wife's decision. She undertakes analysis of the different aspects of the issue at hand and makes a reasonably effective conclusion regarding the issue. Accordingly, Tamika examines the responses by Jack's wife and analyzes the other aspects such as cultural differences, legal actions, and the like.

When she realizes from her analyses that the patient may get apprehensive, she prefers to empower the patient and protect herself legally. It is essential to realize the aspirations of the patient in order to determine whether to yield to the demands of the wife to withhold the information from the patient and Tamika rightly finds fault with the nursing manager and the wife in hurrying to such a decision. She even feels that she should bring up the controversial topic to Jack in a neutral way to get the right feedback from the patient.

This is a good attempt as it would help a nursing practitioner in making an erroneous conclusion regarding the wife's determination to withhold information from the customer. More significantly, Tamika has been careful in keeping the trust and cooperation of the wife by collaborative discussions and partnership analyses about the issue at hand. Thus, she has been effective in convincing the wife that the nurse is supporting and strengthening the family through expected and unexpected life events.

All these actions by Tamika have been with the support of research evidences and her discussion has been very much effective in realizing the issues concerning effective cancer communication. References Oliffe, J., Thorne, S., Hislop, T.G & Armstrong, E.A. (2007). "Truth-telling and cultural assumptions in an era of informed consent." Family and Community Health, 30 (1), 5 - 15. Retrieved 19 September, 2009, from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17149028Registered Nurses Association of Ontario (2006).

"Nursing best practice guideline: Supporting and strengthening families through expected and unexpected life events." Retrieved 19 September, 2009, from http://rnao.org/bestpractices/PDF/BPG_Family.pdf