BEING NON-JUDGMENTAL IN NURSING

As a nurse, your sole mission is providing care and offering treatment to patients who should be in a non-judgmental way regardless of who the care is for. This type of treatment helps promote a patient’s welfare thereby improving patients physical, mental, emotional healthcare.

Many patients often face discrimination in many hospitals and healthcare settings. Some of the patients feel vulnerable than others because of the harmful judgments and discrimination they face hindering the quality of care that patients need to take at various health centers. A judgmental nurse is often considered unethical and unprofessional since they are in direct violation of what they are supposed to be working on as a nurse.

---

Also Read: Nursing tips to deal with difficult patients

---

Nurses are always known to offer kindness, nonjudgmental care to all patients whatever the race, physical disability of the patient as they accept all the aspects of a patient. They should offer holistic care as it recognizes other patient needs be it cultural or spiritual with which medicine alone cannot meet.

Nurses often work in various health settings. Some end up becoming military nurses or anesthetists whereas others find themselves in mental health facilities where they are expected to understand that their roles as psychiatric nurses help them comprehend and appreciate the kind of job they are taking. Often, psychiatric nurses require to have no room for judgment on the type of patients they are dealing with. Becoming non-judgmental toward these nurses is a core attitude that most of these nurses are expected to have and develop effectively as they continue with their experience.

The kind of attitude expected of the nurses needs not be a judgmental one. With the right mindset, acceptance of a client’s condition is one of the ways of becoming non-judgmental. Having a total non-judgmental attitude is, however, not possible since health professionals today have their own beliefs and putting yourself not in a judgmental manner is not possible at that moment or time.

Non-judgmental in nursing is an obligation by the person hence the attitude depicted by a person does not affect nursing care. One should note that becoming a non-judgmental person does not mean that someone is ignoring other differences but is removing some of the feelings associated to better treat the patient. Nurses who offer judgmental care have a professional responsibility which is important in increasing one’s competency.

Some of the judgmental attitudes that hurt patients include religion, culture, nationality, age, gender, a person’s HIV status, drug substance use, obesity and many more. In the provision of holistic care, having an awareness of the patient you are working with contributes immensely to achieving the right goal. Understanding a patient’s experiences and needs help to extend beyond a person’s physical healing and emotional well-being. A nurse who is more aware of the requirements of a patient hence understanding some of the treatments that may conflict with their religion for example. Nurses should strive to have the competence and cultural skills that can help provide care to a wide community range of people ensuring that you have the ability in asking the right set of questions.

Non-judgmental in nursing revolves around three core conditions which are empathy, having a positive acceptance of people and showing genuineness. The beginning of a nurse relationship needs to be based on some of the three core conditions discussed above. It is, therefore imperative to build a relationship that is good, respectful and trustworthy by many people.

Nurses who can reflect their own actions and words after checking up on their patients are required to evaluate their responses to the patients i.e. if they were supportive and can relate and understand whatever motivates his or her patients.