Fear and anxiety are emotions felt by patients as they enter the health care arena
through the emergency department. Management of ED patient fear and anxiety is important
for emergency nurses because feelings of uneasiness and worry can produce altered
levels of comfort and may be antecedents to violence. Use of psychosocial nursing
interventions (eg, establishment of trust between the nurse and the patient, attendance
to the family, provision of information, and emotional presence) by emergency nurses
is endorsed by the ENA and has the potential to mitigate ED patient fear and anxiety.
The purpose of this article is to provide an empirically based literature review related
to the use of psychosocial nursing interventions by emergency nurses to manage ED
patient fear and anxiety.
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References
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Biography
Laural K. Wagley is Graduate Student, Oakland University, Rochester, MI.
Biography
Sarah E. Newton is Associate Professor, Oakland University, Rochester, MI.
Article info
Publication history
Published online: December 25, 2009
Accepted:
July 22,
2009
Received in revised form:
July 8,
2009
Received:
April 19,
2008
Identification
Copyright
© 2010 Emergency Nurses Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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- Psychosocial Nursing Interventions for ED PatientsJournal of Emergency NursingVol. 37Issue 2
- PreviewAs an emergency nurse for more than 20 years, I appreciate the importance of the article “Emergency Nurses' Use of Psychosocial Nursing Interventions for the Management of ED Patient Fear and Anxiety.”1 Emergency nurses who are focused on chief complaints, physician orders, ED throughput, quality indicators, and core measures often forget to provide for the patient's mental and spiritual well-being. Evidence-based nursing care of fear and anxiety can significantly improve patient outcomes and decrease the chance of a patient becoming violent.
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