EVALUATION OF COMMUNICATION SKILLS OF NURSES FROM HOSPITALIZED PATIENTS' PERSPECTIVE

The ability to communicate effectively is one of the main problems of modern
societies. Quality of services is powerfully related to effective communication skills. Studies showed
that lack of effective communication is the main cause of dissatisfaction in health centers. This study
aimed to investigate verbal and nonverbal communicational skills between nurses and patients in
health and treatment centers of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences.
Materials & Methods: This descriptive-analytical study was performed in treatment and educational
centers of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences in 2002. After considering variables such as number
of beds, occupancy rate, and average length of stay per patient, the estimated sample size was 383.
Data were collected with a questionnaire and analyzed by SPSS.
Result: From 383 cases, 53.8% were female and 46.2% were male. 40.3% of cases were illiterate and
1.3% were graduate. Nonverbal communication skills in 12.6% of nurses were low, in 50.8% middle
and in 36.6% were good. Verbal communication skills in 39.6% of nurses were low, in 46.1% middle
and in 14.3% were good.
Conclusion: Finding of this study showed that patients expect nurses to communicate more. In this
study only 14.3% of nurses had good verbal communicational skills. Designing educational courses,
regular watching for communication status, performing extensive investigations and evaluation of
communication obstacles are mandatory