Abstract

Aim. This study  aimed to explore the effectiveness of storytelling technique on professional communication skills of  nurses in critical care units of ShahidRajaee Heart Center.

Background.  Patient Communication  skill is one of the most important aspects of nursing profession that can improve the overall abilities of  nurses and  health care team. Sharing the tacit knowledge on patient communication skills is one of the issues with which nursing system encountered. Retirement of experienced  nurses causes  a considerable loss of  tacit knowledge. One of the best ways to transfer tacit knowledge is to apply the storytelling  technique in transferring these experiences.

Method.This  was a quasi-experimental study with control group. It was conducted on 130 nurses, working in the ICU, who were randomly divided into groups of  intervention and control. The intervention group was instructed via storytelling on clinical experiences within 6 hours. The effect of the intervention was tested through a self-reflective questionnaire completed by both groups before the intervention and  one month later. To analyze the data, paired and independent T-test, Chi-square, Fisher exact test, Mann-Whitney U test and the analysis of covariance via SPSS version 21 were applied.

Finding. Results showed that the intervention and control groups` pre-test scores were 104.60 with standard deviation of 7.60 and 103.13 with a standard deviation of 9.60, respectively. Furthermore, their post-test scores were estimated  as 117.92  with a standard deviation of  4.37 and 102.25 with standard deviation of  8.66 accordingly. There was a statistically significant difference between the post-test scores of intervention and control groups regarding their professional communication skills (p< 0.001). According to the sample based effect sizes, 71.4% of the variability in the post-test is caused by the intervention.

Conclusion. Based on the findings, it can be concluded that storytelling technique enhances the clinical competency of nurses in terms of professional effective communication with both patients and colleagues. Therefore, this technique can be introduced as an effective way to promote professional communication.