Abstract

A descriptive research study was conducted on forty-five patients. The study was guided by the null hypotheses that: (1) positive communication will create more stress than by-talk communications (2) by-talk communication will create more stress than negative communications, and (3) positive communication will create more stress than negative communication. The purpose of the study was to find out the patients' reaction to nurses' controlled communication as they administered injections to the patients. Known factors that might have influenced the findings were eliminated. The Subjective Stress Scale checklist developed by Kerle and Bialek was used to measure stress. Collection of the data was performed in two general hospitals. The purpose sampling method was used in selection of the patients. The patients were divided into three groups of fifteen according to the three types of communication. Each patient checked the one item on the SSS B checklist that best described his feelings immediately after the nurse had administered the injection and stepped out from the room. After checking the checklist the researcher asked the patient three questions, (i) How would you explain in a few words your feeling of the word which you just checked? (2) How did you feel about the medication which you just received? (3) What did the doctor tell you about this injection? The Chi-square test showed there was relationship between variables. The findings of the study were that the positive communication created less stress than the negative communication, and in the other groups there were seen tendency toward stress. Maybe a larger sample would have shown more of a difference between the three communication groups.

There might have been some factors that could have influenced the findings, such as the researcher wearing a nurse’s uniform, cultural and racial differences, patients previous experiences with nurses, personality of the nurses and patients, and the patients' health condition.

In spite of the fact that the patients in the negative and by-talk groups had been told more about their Injection by their physicians than those in the positive communication group, there was less stress In the latter group.’ This suggests the importance of nurses giving communication at the time when the patient actually receives the Injection.

LLU Discipline

Nursing

Department

Nursing

School

Graduate School

First Advisor

R. Maureen Maxwell

Second Advisor

Betty Stirling

Third Advisor

Arthur Blake

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Degree Level

M.S.

Year Degree Awarded

1966

Date (Title Page)

6-1966

Language

English

Library of Congress/MESH Subject Headings

Injections.

Type

Thesis

Page Count

vii; 65

Digital Format

PDF

Digital Publisher

Loma Linda University Libraries

Usage Rights

This title appears here courtesy of the author, who has granted Loma Linda University a limited, non-exclusive right to make this publication available to the public. The author retains all other copyrights.

Collection

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Collection Website

http://scholarsrepository.llu.edu/etd/

Repository

Loma Linda University. Del E. Webb Memorial Library. University Archives

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