Credibility
The second communication skill set, credibility, encapsulates
how professional nurses display their proficiency
in the wide-ranging work relationships that comprise
the health care team. Our interviews revealed three
behaviors within this skill area. First, those interviewed
said that nurses establish and maintain their professionalism
by speaking credibly and avoiding jargon or vague
terminology. Two quotes from the same doctor provide
illustrative comments on this characteristic. In identifying
characteristics of nurses who lack professionalism,
the doctor said, bThe nurse who is ambiguous, insecure,
maybe not confident that a problem exists, or pretty
sure that a problem exists but can’t relay that information
properly is really [a person] you don’t want to be in
the room.Q The doctor added that bvery precise, accurate
use of medical terminologyQ is an essential quality of a
nursing professional.
Second, in the opinion of interviewees, nurses
effectively display credibility when they adjust their
communication style according to the varied roles,
personalities, and situational circumstances that typify
team-based health care delivery. For example, a nurse
provided this story about a peer whose professionalism
she admired:
She’s the team leader and she not only has to be
able to communicate well with the health care
team but also with our doctors. . .I think she has a
good feel for the five physicians that she works
with and how to approach them, which can be
difficult. Each of them has their own set of
guidelines or things that they want to know. She’s
very good at knowing what is important to
communicate to [each one].
Respondents also explained that nurses demonstrate
their expertise when changing their communication to
varying characteristics of the team context. They used
terms such as bsensingQ the environment, bcommunicating
differently,Q and badapting depending on the situationQ to
describe nurses who displayed this aspect of professionalism.
In contrast, those interviewed also identified nurses
who tuned out or ignored other teammembers as examples
of nurses who lack professionalism. A PCA statement
summed up this perspective: bYou know, how like a
mother can tune out a crying baby? That’s like [the way]
they can tune out.Q