The nurse is preparing to perform a psychosocial assessment on a patient. Which of the following should be included in the environment to promote an effective assessment? (Select all that apply)

Choice A reason: Expressing empathy, such as acknowledging the difficulty of the loss, fosters a therapeutic connection. It validates the patient’s emotions, encouraging open expression of grief, which is essential for processing loss and aligns with therapeutic communication principles, making this choice therapeutic.

Choice B reason: Asking the patient to elaborate on their feelings is a therapeutic open-ended question. It promotes exploration of emotions, facilitating grief processing by engaging the patient’s prefrontal cortex in reflecting on their experience, making this a therapeutic response and incorrect for the question.

Choice C reason: Saying “You’ll feel better soon” minimizes the patient’s grief, dismissing their current emotional state. This nontherapeutic response can inhibit emotional expression, as it implies a timeline for grief recovery, potentially disrupting the patient’s natural mourning process, making this the correct choice.

Choice D reason: Offering support and encouraging discussion is therapeutic, as it builds trust and validates the patient’s experience. This response engages the patient in processing grief, supporting emotional regulation through empathetic communication, making it a therapeutic response and incorrect for the question.

Choice A reason: While therapeutic communication can help patients manage emotions, controlling outbursts is a secondary outcome, not a primary goal. It involves techniques like de-escalation, but the focus is on understanding the patient’s emotional state through active listening, not directly controlling behavior, making this choice less accurate.

Choice B reason: Providing a plan of action is a nursing intervention, not a primary goal of therapeutic communication. Communication aims to explore patient perspectives and build trust, not to deliver directives. Plans are developed after understanding the patient’s needs, making this choice incorrect.

Choice C reason: Assessing the patient’s perception of a problem is a key goal of therapeutic communication. Techniques like active listening and open-ended questions help nurses understand the patient’s subjective experience, identifying psychological issues and tailoring interventions, making this the correct choice for the goal described.

Choice D reason: Informing the patient of priority problems is an educational or directive action, not a primary goal of therapeutic communication. Communication focuses on exploring patient perspectives, not imposing nurse-identified priorities, which could disrupt trust and engagement, making this choice incorrect.