Gustafsson Tanja, Lindberg Elisabeth, Maurin Söderholm Hanna, Hedén Lena, van Dulmen Sandra, Sundler Annelie J
Faculty of Caring Science, Work Life and Social Welfare, University of Borås, Borås, Sweden.
PICTA Prehospital Innovation Arena, Lindholmen Science Park, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Int J Older People Nurs. 2025 Sep;20(5):e70048. doi: 10.1111/opn.70048.
Communication between older persons and nursing assistants is important in providing high-quality, person-centred home care. While previous research has reported on older persons' emotional concerns during home care conversations, there is a need to gain an in-depth understanding of emotional concerns' role in such conversations and how to support the older persons' comfort and well-being. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the nature and focus of emotional communication between older persons and nursing assistants in home care.
A descriptive qualitative design using observational data from 83 audio-recorded home care visits was used to identify and analyse sequences of distressing emotional communication, analysed through thematic analysis.
In this study, four themes were described illustrating how emotional communication between older persons and nursing assistants during home care visits creates opportunities for empathy: (1) recognising empathic opportunities, (2) identifying subtle and vague signs of emotional distress, (3) expressing needs for emotional support, and (4) striving to restore comfort in challenging conversations.
Conversations about older persons' emotions and worries can be complex. The findings indicate a fine line between meaningfulness and discomfort in emotional sequences. Expressions of emotional distress provide empathic opportunities that call for attentiveness and sensitivity from nursing assistants, implying a need for education and training in person-centred communication.
Emotional communication acknowledging empathic opportunities enhances person-centred care by promoting trust, comfort, and well-being. Ultimately, emotional communication reinforces the importance of empathy in home care and creates space for emotional interactions, leading to more supportive relationships.
老年人与护理助理之间的沟通对于提供高质量的、以患者为中心的家庭护理至关重要。虽然先前的研究报告了老年人在家庭护理对话中的情感关切，但有必要深入了解情感关切在这类对话中的作用，以及如何支持老年人的舒适感和幸福感。因此，本研究旨在探讨家庭护理中老年人与护理助理之间情感沟通的本质和重点。
采用描述性定性设计，利用83次家庭护理访视的录音观察数据，通过主题分析来识别和分析令人痛苦的情感沟通序列。
在本研究中，描述了四个主题，说明了家庭护理访视期间老年人与护理助理之间的情感沟通如何创造共情机会：（1）识别共情机会；（2）识别情感困扰的细微和模糊迹象；（3）表达情感支持需求；（4）努力在具有挑战性的对话中恢复舒适感。
关于老年人情绪和担忧的对话可能很复杂。研究结果表明，情感序列在有意义和不适之间存在微妙界限。情感困扰的表达提供了共情机会，这需要护理助理的关注和敏感，这意味着需要进行以患者为中心的沟通方面的教育和培训。
承认共情机会的情感沟通通过促进信任、舒适感和幸福感来增强以患者为中心的护理。最终，情感沟通强化了家庭护理中共情的重要性，并为情感互动创造了空间，从而带来更具支持性的关系。
