Making every contact count
‘Good health is now everyone’s business, so it is vitally important that everyone understands how to communicate health messages effectively’ (Royal Society for Public Health 2012). Being prescriptive has its place in health care, for example in prescribing medication regimens, physiotherapy exercises or specialist dietary requirements, but even the wording of a
behavioural instruction affects how likely it will be followed. Being clear and specific increases the extent to which information is both understood and remembered (Ley 1988, 1997). Adhering to prescriptive regimens involves patients making behavioural changes to their day-to-day lives. Behaviour change fits under the category of self-management and while the responsibility for behaviour change lies with the patient, the role of the nurse is to be enabling, empowering and supportive. Several studies show that patients, even those who continue with risky behaviours, expect nurses to ask about lifestyle and welcome such discussions if done appropriately. Assay and Lambert (1999) identified four main factors that change outcomes: