Documenting Behaviour and Emotion

Chapter 7: Documenting Behaviour and Emotion

Overview:

• Outlines emotion in relation to behaviour and discusses methods of understanding a patient’s emotion
• Discusses Behaviour, how to describe it, and how to correctly document it
• Includes a case study which illustrates many of the topics discussed in the chapter

Description:

All nurses experience and observe the behaviour and emotion of those in their care throughout their work day. Whether these behaviours are expected or unexpected, nurses have a responsibility to observe them carefully and to record accurately what they have observed. It is essential that nurses recognise the nuances of human emotion and the behaviour that comes from the expression of that emotion. This chapter guides nurses on how to accurately assess and document emotion and behaviour.

Topics:

• Introduction
• Emotion
  • Empathy
  • Recognising clues
  • Asking questions
• · Behaviour
  • Describing behaviour
  • Documenting behaviour
• A case study
• Conclusion

Speaker /Author:

Felicity Humble
Felicity is a registered nurse and registered psychiatric nurse who holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nursing and a diploma in applied science (advanced psychiatric nursing). Despite being ‘in a nervous and unprepared state’ when she was sent to the psychiatric ward for her last rotation as a student general nurse in 1975, Felicity fell in love with this area of nursing and has remained passionately interested in psychiatric nursing ever since. Throughout this time she has been enriched by an array of experiences with the elderly and has worked with aged patients in acute admission, rehabilitation, and secure settings. She has also been part of a community mental-health team for the aged in which she was involved in the assessment and management of aged people in their own homes or in other accommodation settings in the community.

Over the past 12 years Felicity has worked as a clinical educator with undergraduate student nurses—helping them make sense of their psychiatric nursing experience and endeavouring to raise their interest in a career in mental health. She has also had several years’ experience working with postgraduate psychiatric nurses. Felicity is currently a psychiatric nurse educator working with nursing staff at Barwon Health Community and Mental Health (Geelong, Australia).

Professional Reviews: