Voices used by nurses when communicating with patients and relatives in a department of medicine for older people—An ethnographic study

Aims and objectives To describe how nurses communicate with older patients and their relatives in a department of medicine for older people in western Sweden. Background Communication is an essential tool for nurses when working with older patients and their relatives, but often patients and relatives experience shortcomings in the communication exchanges. They may not receive information or are not treated in a professional way. Good communication can facilitate the development of a positive meeting and improve the patient's health outcome. Design An ethnographic design informed by the sociocultural perspective was applied. Methods Forty participatory observations were conducted and analysed during the period October 2015–September 2016. The observations covered 135 hours of nurse–patient–relative interaction. Field notes were taken, and 40 informal field conversations with nurses and 40 with patients and relatives were carried out. Semistructured follow‐up interviews were conducted with five nurses. Results In the result, it was found that nurses communicate with four different voices: a medical voice described as being incomplete, task‐oriented and with a disease perspective; a nursing voice described as being confirmatory, process‐oriented and with a holistic perspective; a pedagogical voice described as being contextualised, comprehension‐oriented and with a learning perspective; and a power voice described as being distancing and excluding. The voices can be seen as context‐dependent communication approaches. When nurses switch between the voices, this indicates a shift in the orientation or situation. Conclusion The results indicate that if nurses successfully combine the voices, while limiting the use of the power voice, the communication exchanges can become a more positive experience for all parties involved and a good nurse–patient–relative communication exchange can be achieved. Relevance to clinical practice Working for improved communication between nurses, patients and relatives is crucial for establishing a positive nurse–patient–relative relationship, which is a basis for improving patient care and healthcare outcomes.