Working with Diffi⊂u漢t Peop漢e 繭冶 · 2016. 11. 17. · Working with Diffi⊂u漢t Peop漢e...
Transcript of Working with Diffi⊂u漢t Peop漢e 繭冶 · 2016. 11. 17. · Working with Diffi⊂u漢t Peop漢e...
Wo「king With Diffi⊂u音t & Combative Peop漢e
Working with Diffi⊂u漢t Peop漢e
HeaIth care is a peopIe-O「iented
business. Every health care
WOrker spends a lot oftime every
day with people: COWOrkers,
⊂=ents, famiIy members, Visitors
and soon.
Getting aiong with peopIe is part
Ofyourjob. And, iet’s face
it…SOmetimes, it’s the hardest
Part Of yourjob=t’s natural to
get aIong better with some
PeOPIe than with others. For
example, Certain peopie rub you
the wrong way. Others seem
unhappy with you no matter
What you do. And, Sti= others
Seem tO take pleasure ln gIVing
you a hard time. ln retum,yOumay fee=ike these peopIe are
being di解ult. Butwhat do we
mean exactIy when we saythat
someone is 〃difflcuIt’’?
Peopie are d櫛cuItwhen they get
in the way ofwhatwey±型吐Or
凸eedto do. Forexample:
. Tomv坦口壁totake his Iunch
breakjust when his coworker,
Sharon, aSks for his heIp
transferring a cIient. Tom has
transferred that particuiar ⊂lient
by himseifmanytimes and is
irritated with Sharon for
needing heIp. Hedelays his
!unch break long enough to
繭冶heIp Sharon, but he’s mad at
herfor being d櫛cult.
● Susan畦to Ieaveworkon
timetodayto pickup her
daughteratschooI. But her
CIient, Mr.」ones, is moving
more sIowlythan usuaI and
Susan is afraid she’s going to be
late. She wished that Mr.」ones
WOuId stop being so d櫛cult!
Are Sharon and Mr. 」ones reaily
d櫛cuIt people? Maybe...and
maybe not. Remember, it’s onIy
丁om’s opinion that Sharon is
being d櫛cult. MaybeTom
WOuId change his mind ifhe
knew that Sharon is pregnant and
herdoctortoId hernotto l肺
dients.
And, it’s Susan’s opinion that Mr.
」ones is a di怖cuItclient. Would
Susan think differently ifshe
knew that Mr. 」ones hadjust
found outthat his wife is dying?
Remember...
CALしtNG SOMEONE ′′DIFFl⊂UL丁〃
lS A MATTER OF OP/N/ON NOT「AC丁!
棚ink obou書書he
竹iHi`u/書〃 peop/e in
y〇㌦′〃俺. In請細事pのでら
wife down a〃書he worくね
yo岬でan think ofto
de5`高めe fhe什behのVior;
Des⊂ribing Di怖くuit Peop看e
Did you come upwith anyofthefoIIowing
WOrds to describe the ’‘d櫛cult’’peopIe you
. Demanding . Sa「castic
. lrritabIe . Hostile
・ Nasty . Uncooperative
. Rude . Angry
・ Aggressive . Complaining
. CriticaI ・ Ungratefui
. Depressed . Pushy
. Abusive . Mean
・ S⊂ary . Argumentative
Why A看e Some Peop看e Diffi⊂u音t?
We are a旧ndividuals...with our own
PerSOnalities, likes and dislikes, PerSOnal habitsand ways ofcommunicating. But′ SOmeOfus
Seem tO have trouble getting aIong with other
PeOPle. There are many reasons forthis.
Rememberthat ’‘d櫛cuIt’’peopIe may be:
. Recovering f「om stress o「 tragedy in their
看ives.
・ Su什eringf「om an川ness.
know?
Now, think about clients and coworke「s who a「e
皇旦SytO get aIong with.
How manywords can you
thinkofto des⊂ribe them?
lfyou’re Iike most people,
this listw川bemuch
5horterthan your first list.
Whyis itso much easiertothinkofthethingswe
don’t Iike about peopIe
than it istothinkabout
the g♀Q立things? T「yto
think po5itively about a=
Rem em ber…
/=ake5 mOre energy tO be
neg。tive rh。n /t doe5 rO be
poj諦ive!
your clients and cowo「kers!
Dealing with a disab冊y.
ExperIenCIng Pain-alI
day, eVery day.
Fee=ng lonely or
depressed.
丁aking medications that
make them act
d肝erentIythan normaI.
Hint: Be Carefu8 Who Ybu CaI音〃Diffi⊂u看t〃!
lmagine thi5: You’ve been assigned to work with
a new client, Mr. TayIor. Your coworker, Mary,
teiis you that she worked with M「. TayIor
yesterday and he was ‘‘diHlcuIf’’, ’’rude’’and‘‘grouchy’’.
So, nOWWhat? You haven’teven metMr.
丁aylo「, but you’「e al「eady prepared for him to
give you troubie. You probabIy wish you didn’t
havetoworkwith him ataiI. Howw川thisaffect
the way you t「eat Mr.Taylo「 when you first
meet him?
◎2OO「 lntheKnow, In⊂.
Write down rhree quaIities
you have that make you
銭型to get aIong with:
1.
sca「ed o「 in pain yesterday. /fyouthinkthof叩erso而
o「,Marymayhavebeen ,r。窃盤霊箆嵩th。
having a bad day herse-f! Wqy捜behoveoroundhim!
Page 2
Remember…rePOrting
incidents ofvioIence or abuse
from ciients (Or COWOrkers) is
ImPO「tant, but it’s best td
avoid spreading ’’rumors’’
about peopIe. After alI, Mr.
丁ayIor may have been
What Are Agg「essive Persona看ities?
PeopIe wfth aggressive persona/棚es may
be;
● 」oud.
● Rude.
・ Bos5y.
. lntimidating.
. Argumentative.
. lmpatient.
Aggressive people tend ro:
・ Interruptothe「s instead o川stening.
・ Makesa「castic remarks about otherpeopie.
Stand too cIose to others.
Stare or gIare at othe「
PeOPIe.
Point o「 shake theirfingers.
Raise thei「 voices.
Make decisions for others.
Complain a Iot.
THE BOTTOMし1NE: '
Aggressive peopIe seem to be Aggres5ivepeopIe
請書書と藍霊薯:諾驚惹about others.
What Makes Agg「essive People Diffi⊂u8t?
Wbrking wifh peop/e who are aggressJve
`an be di鮒i`ul書be`ause they fend fo;
. Demanda Iotofyourtimeandattention.
・ Blameyou (andeve「yoneeIse)forthings
that aren’t your fault.
. T「yto control your behavior.
・ Saythings like, 〃you。Iwoy5…〃or “you
neVer.
. Putyoudowntomake
themselves feel more
POWerfu l.
. Trytostartarguments
by saying hu「tfuI
things o「 by raising
their voices.
. Bestubbomabout
their schedule and
activities.
Write down fhree quaIities
you have that make you
d櫛cuit to get aiong with:
1.
How Should Ybu Communi⊂ate With Agg営essive Peop看e?
・ Most importantly,trytOStayCalm.
Aggressive peopie want to upset you. So, if
you let yourseifget angry, then you′ve given
them what they want-COntrOI overyou!
(Remember, nOOne ⊂an makeyou feel bad
unIess you let them!)
・ Don’t beaf「aid to stand upforyourseIf…but
do it in a respectful manne「. Continueto
Show care and concem for the othe「 person.
@2001 inthe Know,inc.
丁ryto也垂旦tO Whatthe
PerSOn is reaily saying.
For exampie, ifM「. Smith
isye冊ng about his lunch
being coid, maybe he’s
t「ying to teii you that he
needs heIp feeding
himseIf.
SmiIe and stay reiaxed.
lfyou odd均塾生anger rO fhe
Onger Of。n 。ggreS5iv叩erson,
Whot doyou hove?
An expIosion!
Page 3
What A看e Passive Personalities?
People wifh passive persona/ifies may be;
. Quiet.
・ Ag「eeablea=thetime.
・ ApoIogeticforthingsthataren′ttheirfauIt.
. Intimidated byothers.
・ 5hy.
● Scared.
Passive peopIe tend ro;
・ Avoid speaking upforthemselves.
. Letothers makedecisionsforthem.
. GetoverwheImed.
・ Beafraidtosay’‘no’’.
. Ashamed ofthemse看ves.
・ Avoideyecontact.
● ‘′Beataroundthebush’’.
● A=owotherstoberude.
THE BOTTOM LINE:Passive peopIe seem to be
COnCemed with other
peopIet needs andWantS...but don’t try to
meet their own needs.
What Makes Passive People Diffi⊂u音t?
書〃brking w肋peop/e who are passIVe `an
be d朋i`ulf be`ause they rend ro;
. Blame themselves for eve「ything…but never
do anything to change the situation.
. Wastetime by’’beating around the bush’’.
(丁hey don’t come out and tell you what they
need.)
・ Expectyouto readtheirminds-and
become unhappy when you can’t.
Get quietIy aggressive
When they feeI
OVerWhelmed.
Have troubie making
decisions...even littIe
TaIk negativeIy about
PeOPie behind their
backs.
How Shou音d Ybu Communi⊂ate With Passive People?
Ask questions to try to get passive peopIe to
OPen uP. (But, aVOid questionsthatcan be
answered with just ‘γes’’or ′’no’’.)
Don’t stand over passive people whiie you
taIktothem. it makesthem feeI scared and
Shy. Sitdown soyou are on the same ievei.
Praise passive peopIe when they stand up
for themselves or express their needs.
@2OO「 lntheKnow, Inc.
PeopIe with po55ive
personcl/ities don’t take
re5POnSibi/rty for rheir
OWn /ive∫.
Remember!
80% ofthe problemsin your work day will
⊂Ome f営om 2堕塑Ofthe
peopie you workwith.
771ink abour /t…
Don’t most ofyour
PrOblems ⊂Ome from
the samefew clients or
coworke rs?
Heip them make decisions by
giving them a couple ofChoices and then offe「ing
information about the best
WaytOgO. ForexampIe, aSk
Mrs. Ke=y ifshe wants to
wear her blue sweater o「 her
green blouse. Then,te= her
that it’s a bit cool today.
Hopefu=y, She’II pickthe
SWeater!
P。SSive peop/e are
in5eCure about
th emse/ves… 0nd
about eveIy de`i5ion
thγ mOke.
Page4
丁ips For Wo「king With Diffi⊂uit People
Sinceyou spend so much timewith your
Clients, thei「 negative behavior is often
directed atyou. But,try hard nottotake
their comments o「 behaviors pe「sona=y!
Remember, it’s onIy your opinion that
SOmeOne atWO「kis d櫛⊂uIt. A person who
SeemS d櫛cult to you may get aIong fine
With everyone eIse. Or, yOu may get along
greatwith a ciientthat noone eIsewantsto
work with!
Try ha「d not to overreact when deaIing with
a d櫛cuIt pe「son. AskyourseIf, ‘‘ls this issue
rea=y worth making a fuss about?’’
When you wo「kwith peopIe who have given
you trouble in the past, trytO Startfreshevery day. Forget about what happened
yesterday, Iast week or last month.
Te看i yourcIientswhatyou are goingto do
before you do it. This decreases the chance
that they w川react negativeiy.
Ifsomeone is yelling at you, Crying or
COmPIaining ioudIy, try Standing sti=,
iooking directIy at the person…and waiting.
This givesthe person a chancetogetaII
their anger out.
You might aIso try saying, γwantfohear
everything you h。Ve fo 5。男but not here where
it might d厨urb other5. Lett go somewhere
privo te. 〃
Time fora Laugh!
De0r Lord
5o f。r tod。y God /’ve done 。lright. /h。Ven’t
gos5ゆed /o5t my rempe′ been greedy grump男n。5ty
Or Se侮h・・・ 。nd /ho very rh。nkfuI for thor.
But/n a few minute5, God /tn going ro getou書ofbed
。ndわ′Om then on, lTh going to need。 /ot more he佃!
Amen.
◎2001 inthe Know, Inc.
Consider thatthere may be
other reasons for a cIient’s
behavio「 (besides just
Wanting to make your life
d櫛cuIt). Fo「 exampIe, Mr.
」efferson a⊂tS grOuChy to
Sa=y everytime she comes
into his room. He saysthings
Iike, 〃you 。Iways ⊂Ome /n here
。ndmumble rhing5 。tme. /
don’t Iikeyou!〃 SaIIy’s
feeiings are hurt unt旧he
doctor discovers that M「.
」e什erson has Iost most ofhis
【ザ
覇peopIe you workWirh-eVen when
勅ey 。re “diHicuIt∵
hea「ing. Now, Sa=y understands that Mr.
」efferson wasjust feeiing scared and upset
about his hearing. (And, 「ather than admit it,
he was taking his frustration out on Sa=y.)
Since hegot his hearing aid,things have
been better.
Be patient with your coworkers, tOO. 1t′s
human natu「e to thinkthat ifyou「 coworker
IS grumPy With you, it must be something
you’ve done. But, ⊂hances are, it has
nothing to do with you. So′ don’ttake
everything pe「son訓y. For exampie, What
happens ifyou say hitoTim and hedoesn’t
SPeakto you? You mightthinkto yourseIf,“77m h。te5 me.〃 But, What’s the reaI truth?
Timjustgotsome bad newsfrom homeand
didn’t hea「you say hi.
Remember that oId ‘′ruIe’′ about counting to
ten? It rea看lydoeswork. The nexttimeyou
feeI angry or upset with a client or coworker,
b「eathe sIowiy and count to ten-before
you speak. You’= feeI bette「 aboutthe way
you handIe the situation.
Don’t a=ow other peopie to control your
moods. ifyou do,yOu are giving them
tremendous power over you. So, ifyou’re in
a good mood, don’t iet someone else’s
g「ouchiness b「ing you down.
Page5
㌔浮圏
塑旦坦丁ips Fo「 Working With Diffi⊂ult Peop音e
Rememberthatwhen peopIe
are being d櫛⊂uit, it′s usua=y
because they:
. Wantyourattention.
● Areafraid.
. FeeIinsecure.
● Lackconfidence.
. Fee川ketheirlivesareout
of control.
圏DiHlcuIr peop/e
Ore frying to grob
your power from
you...be`auSe tryfeeI po werIe55.
・ Whendeaiingwitha d櫛cuItpe「son,focus
On the particuiar behaviors you don’t
like...ratherthanjust Iabe=ng the pe「son.
For example, instead ofsaying to a
COWOrker, 〃youte 。lways rude fo me〃 try
Saying, γ feeI hurt when you don’t 5ay gOOd
moming, pIe。5e Or thonkyou fo me.〃
. Thenexttimeyou havetoworkwitha
d櫛cult cIient, give you「selfa Iittie ’’pep
talk’’.丁eii yourseif, γm re。dyfor fhis. /c。n
h。ndIe wh。teVer h。ppen5 rOd。y. / will not get
upset no m。tterwh。t.〃 it may seem silly, but
ifyou start outwith a positive attitude
(rathe「 than te旧ng yourseIf, “77]i5 /s going fo
be。Wんl.’’), yOu「time with the clientw川be
. ⊂on5iderthis: lfyou sawa videotapeof
yourseIffrom a confrontation with a d櫛cuIt
PerSOn, WOuld you be embarrassed byyourOWn behavior? ifso, howwouId you iiketo
See yOu「Self behave?
・ Besureto praisepeoplewhentheybehave
in a positive manner. (ln otherwo「ds,
reward the behavior you want to see them
repeat.) For exampIe, ifMrs. Simpson says,
写Ie。5e he佃me ro the b。throom now" instead
Ofthe grumpy way she usua=y says it, yOu
might say, “771。nkyou for。5king 5O nice小lH
be happy to he佃you.〃 Hopefui看y, She’=
③ 200=n the Know, Inc.
COntinue to ask nicely in the future.
・ It’saIwaysgood notto makepromisesthat
you can’t keep…but especiaIly with ’’d櫛cult’’
PeOPie. Ifyou teli them you’regoing todo
SOmething,then do it. And, ifyou haveto
breakyour promise for some reason, be sure
to apoiogize.
. 1fyouworkwithaduItclients,besureto
treat them like aduIts. Ifyou treatthem Iike
ChiIdren, they may behave that way!
・ WatchyourbodyIanguage. 1fyouteII
PeOPle that you’「e listening to them, but
you’re standing with you「 hands on your
hips, taPPing yourfoot and staring at a
Ciipboard...they’= know you aren’t reaIIy
=stening.
・ Keepin mindthatwe訓havece「tain ’‘pet
PeeVeS’’, mOSt Ofwhich deveIoped during
Our Chiidhoods. For exampIe, maybe you「
mother aIways nagged you to keep your hair
OutOfyoureyes. Oneday, a CIientsaysto
you,佑ow can you 5ee With your h。ir /n your
eyes?〃 it’s an innocent question, but it sets
you offbecause you’re sensitive to it. (And,
you’re not rea=y mad at the ciient, yOu’re
mad atyou「 mother!) So,thinkaboutthe
Iittle things that tend to bother you and try
not to overreact when a client or coworker
does them.
丁hinkofyourmost
‘‘di冊cult’′ciient…
●
Wouldyouwantto
誓書豊豊 d ノヽ
Page 6
What About Confused CIients?
一 Doesthissoundfam掴ar? Ma「y’scIient,Mr.
Brown, has good daysand bad days. On the
good days, he’s not ‘’d櫛cult’’at a=. Mary
reaiiyenjoyswo「king with him. But, On bad
days, hetriestociimb outofbed, Pu=s out
his urinary catheter, undresses himseifand
Waiksaround naked. MaryfeeIs Iike puiling
her hairouton those days!
' ObviousIyMr. Brown has periodsof
COnfusion. These might be a sign of
dementia, deIirium or a medication reaction.
Whatever the cause, it’s important to
rememberthat M「. Brown is凸Q! being
d櫛cult on purpose.
ittakesa lotof
patience to work with
COnfused ciients. Your
number one goa=s to
keep confused ⊂Iients
Safe, butyou have to
keep their dignity and
COmfort in mind, tOO.
1t′sa b0didea to use
restraints to tie
COnfused clients to a
bedora ⊂hair. (And,
ln many StateS, itis
山室g重し)
弼tempora/y. For other5,耀o
perm。nent `Ondition.
What七the Diffe「en⊂e Between Dementia and De8i「ium?
Dep「ived of sIeep.
丁aking seve「aI kinds of
medications.
Dementia is a `hroniccondition which causes . on bed rest.
常盤書書誌豊豊豊島・霊霊t.Delirium isan 。CuteShort-term mentai probIem . Recoveringfrom a
諾禁書嵩詳言詰: :嵩reCentOIder peopie who are:
. Suffe「ing from an infection orfever.
Try uns`rambiing the
foiiowing words.
HIN青Eo`h word re/ate5 tO
COm m uni`O tion!
NITLSE
EM5i」
CEOVi
丁ESQOUIN
How ⊂an Ybu He漢p Confused C音ients?
. Remain verycaim when you speakwith . Rememberthatagitated clients often
COnfused cIients. SpeaksIowIyin a caring respond toquiet music. IfpossibIe,tum On a
tone ofvoice. (Remember that theywouid radio ortape pIayer. Keep the music
never choo5e tO be confused.) SOOthing-nO ‘’rock ’n ro=’’! And keep the
・薫嵩諾鵠濃鵜〃 黒岩豊嵩霊丁hatwouId probabIyupsether. lnstead,aSk . Te=yoursupe「visorrightawayaboutany
herto teil you more about he「 mother. neW ePisodes ofconfusion and/Or COnCemS
you have about a confused client’s safety.
⑥ 200=n the Know, inc. NOI⊥S]nO ′]⊃IO∧ ′!「問S ′N]⊥Sl「 :S」eMSu∀ Page 7
What About Combative &Vio8ent C音ients?
Some ofyour ciients may be d櫛cuit because
they tend to be combative or violent. So,
WOrking with d櫛cuIt peopie can be more than
a communication issue-it can be a safety issue!
The govemment agency ca=ed OSHA
(OccupationaI Safety & HeaIth Administ「ation) is
COnCemed with empioyee safety. They work
hard to make sure that every workpIace is safe
for eve「y empIoyee.
Did you know that more assauits take place in
the heaIth care indust「ythan in anyother?
About 2/3 ofaIi wo「kpiace assauits take piace in
nursing homes, hospitaIs and other residentiaI
What音s Wo看kpla⊂e Vio漢en⊂e?
VioIence atwork is morethanjustthe kind of
things you hear reported on the evening news・
Workplace vioience inciudes incidents such as:
・ Verbai abuse,includingcursingand
SCreaming.
. Th「eats.
. Unwanted sexualadvances.
・ PhysicaI assault, incIuding hitting, SCratChing
and biting.
Patient Rights vs.Ybur Safety
. You’veprobabIyheardthattheneedsand
「ights ofyour clients come first. And fheydo!
However, yOu have rights, tOO. That incIudes
the rightto a safe and heaIthywork
envIrOnment.
・ It’sgoodtobepreparedforthepossib冊y
that some ofyour cIients may be combative
Or Vioient. But that doesn’t mean thatyou
haveto put upwith being abused,dayafter
day.
⑥ 200=n the Know, Inc.
丁o heIp prevent workpIace vioience, OSHA has
deveIoped guideIines such as:
・ Everywo「kpIacemusthave
a zero-tOler。nCe POIicy for
any violence o「th「eats of
VioIence against
empIoyees.
・ EmpIoyeescan′tbe
Punished fo「 reporting
incidents-Whether they
invoIve a cIientora
COWOrker. In fact,
empioyees shouId be
encour。ged to report aiI
incidents.
Remember...the majority
Ofyour clients w川not
exhibit vioIent behavior.
And most ofyour
COWOrkers are peacefuI
PeOPIe,tOO! Keep in mind
that peopIe are more
IikeIy to be violentwhen
they are scared,
OVerWhelmed or have
their ‘′personaI space’’
invaded.
園30% ofnuI5es repOrted
th。t fhey h。Ve been
Victims of workpIa`e
vioIen ⊂e.
Time for aしaugh!
Finding oneofher
Students making faces
at others on the
PIayground, Ms. SmithStOPPed to taikto the
Child. Sm紺ng sweetiy,
the teacher said,
侮obby when / w。S 。
`hiId / wa5 foId fh。t /fl
m。de ugly fa⊂e5, my
face wou/d freeze 0nd
5tγ thot way.〃
Bobby looked up at
her and repIied, “We//
M5. 5mith, yOu C。n’t
SOy yOu Weren ’t
Wam ed!〃
Be sure to report any incidents ofabuse to
your supervisor. (You’lI probably have to f川
Out an incident report.) Remember…ifyou
don’t report the p「obiem, it may happen
again to someone else in the future.
Te= your supe「visor ifthe stress ofwo「king
With a particuIar client is getting to you. 1t’s
betterto switch your assignmentthan to risk
taking yourfrust「ation out on the c=ent.
Page 8
Tips for Wo看kp獲a⊂e Safety
・ RememberthatworkpIace safety is an
lmPOrtant Part Ofyourjob. The mo「e
attention you and you「 coworkers payto
maintaining a safe environment, the better
Offyou’= aIi be. (And,yOurClientsw川
bene価, tOO!)
・ AskyoursupervisorifanyofyourcIients
have a history ofbeing physica=y orverb訓y
abusive. Knowing your ciient’s hi§tOry Wii看
heip you be prepa「ed to handle combative
Or Vioient situations.
● Take th「eats seriousIv. ⊂on5iderthis rrue
5tOry: in a Coiorado hospitai, a Patient was
recovering from su「ge「y. During the night,
hetoId the nu「sethat he wouId k川the next
Pe「SOn Who cameto get him outofbed.
丁he night nurse didn’t te= anybody what the
Patient had said. The next moming,the
Patient stabbed two physicaI the「apists with
fo「ks.
・ Remembe「…it’s betterto reporta threatand
have it tum out to be ′’nothing’’than to
lgnOre a threatand wind upwith someone
ge両ng hurt.
・ Besureto shareyourobservations about
your clients with other staff members. ForexampIe, te= you「 coworkers ifMrs. Grady
gets agitated and hostiie every time
SOmeOne mentions her son.
・ Consider using a ‘’buddysystem’’when
Caring for c=ents who have a history ofbeing
COmbative. This isn’tsoyou can ′’gang up’’
On the ciient, butsothatyou can remain safe
as you perform cIient care.
・ lfyouworkina hospitalorafac掴ty,there
may be a spe⊂iai ala「m ortelephonecode
used when an empIoyee is in troubie. Be
Sure yOu know your workplace procedure.
@2001 lnthe Know,Inc.
. Keep in mind thatthefo=owing conditions
may cause or contribute to vioIent behavior:
・ ⊂OPD. This Iung disease may preventthe
brain from getting enough oxygen. This
Can make people anxious and agitated.
. St「oke. Afte「a stroke,there may be some
damagetothe brain thatcauses a change
ln yOur Client’s personaiity二
・ Urina「yTraくt lnfe⊂tion. Believe it or not,
an infection in or nearthe bladdercan
CauSe COnfusion and agitation.
・ Pain. When clientsa「ein a iotofpain,they
may become frustrated ve「y easiiy and
may lash out atthose around them.
● Dementia &A音zheimer′s Disease. WhiIe
Vioience is not a frequent symptom, if it
does deveiop, it’s usu訓y in the middIe
StageS Ofthe disease. (And, this middIe
Stage Can last for years.)
. B「aintumor. Whenthereisan abno「mal
growth in the brain, itcan cause
PerSOnaiity changes.
. Substan⊂eabuse. 1fciientsare underthe
influence ofdrugs or alcohol, they may be
combative or violent.
. Depression. When peopie are depressed,
they may not be thinking straight and may
get frustrated easiIy.
Be supportive ofany
COWOrker who experiences
WOrkpIace vioience. Any
Vioient incident can be scary
and can have a iasting effect
On SOmeOne’s emotions.
Some peopie have even quit
WO「king in heaIth care
because ofthe st「ess caused de。/w肋theemorion5
by workp看ace violence. th翌諾霊鳥葉柄
Page 9
Tips Fo「Wo「king With Combative PeopIe
ifyour client is combative,
Iookfor a pattem to the
behavior. Your observations
W川heIpthe nursesand
doctors figure out and/or
manage your cIients’
behavior. For exampIe, do
your clients usua=y become
aggressive:
・ Whenthey’re hungry?
. Aftermeals?
・ Ata particulartimeofday?
. Whenthey’recoid?
. Whenthey’「ehot?
・ Afte「taking medications?
・ Whenthey’rewith agroupofpeopIe?
. Whenthey’releftaione?
. Aftergetting some exercise?
. OnIywithyou?
・ With anyonedressed inwhite?
Pay attention to things thatyour clients
enjoydoing. Then, ifyou see a vioIent
episode coming, try tO distract your client
With a favorite activity.
Ifyou encounter cIients who a「e combative
Or Violent, try tO:
. SpeaksIowiyand caimIy.
. Listentowhattheyaresaying. Don’t
tease or igno「e them.
. Don′tcrowdthem. Givethem roomto
breathe.
・ Don′tletthem crowdyou…Orbackyou
into a come「.
. Avoid touching ang「yciients uniessyou
know from past experien⊂e that
touching them is safe.
◎2OO「 inthe Know, In⊂.
Sometimes, yOu Can get the attention ofa
hostile, uPSet Pe「SOn byca冊ng out his or her
name-IoudIy and cIeariy. (But don’t
COntinue to shout atthe person.)
Try to get a hostiIe, COmbative person to sit
down, if possibie. (Most people are less
aggressive when they are seated.) But, ifthe
PerSOn refuses to sit, yOu ShouId remain
Standing, tOO.
Ifa cIient becomes vioIent around other
Clients, do your best to protect the other
C=ents (and yourself) f「om harm.
Keep in mind thatall cIients havethe rightto
refuse treatment. For exampie, ifa ciient
becomes aggressive when you arrive to give
a bath, Iet your superviso「 know thatthe
Client has refused your ca「e.
Be a good role model. Ifyou getangryo「
aggressive because ofa ciient’s vioience, it
W川oniy make the situation worse.
Make sure you knowyour workplace policy
for getting heIp ifa c=ent becomes violent.
Rememberthat a= episodes ofcombative or
VioIent behavior shouId be reported to a
Physician. There may be a way to treat the
aggressive behavior.
Remembe「…
You have唾main goaIs:
1. Keep yourclients safe-eVen if
they are being combative.
2. Guard yourown safetyand peace
Ofmind.
Page 「O