Nurses’ perceptions of communicating with minority parents in a neonatal nursery: a communication accommodation theory approach.

ABSTRACT

Background: Communication is a central part of providing family centred care in neonatal nurseries and is associated with a range of positive outcomes for families. However, previous research has indicated that communication is more problematic between health professionals and minority groups of patients and families, although much of this research is atheoretical. The current study used communication accommodation theory to examine nurses’ perceptions of effective and ineffective interactions with typical parents, culturally and linguistically diverse parents (CALD), and adolescent parents in neonatal nurseries.

Method: We conducted semi-structured interviews with nurses from two tertiary hospitals in Australia. Twelve nurses from one hospital were asked about interactions with typical parents, and twenty-nine nurses from the other hospital were asked about interactions with CALD and adolescent parents. Interviews were coded for communication strategy and accommodative stance, using a coding system based on communication accommodation theory.

Results: Descriptions of interactions with typical parents (who were perceived as Anglo-Australian) differed from those with CALD and adolescent parents. Interactions with CALD parents focused mostly on comprehension and cultural differences, with limited mention of other strategies. Interactions with adolescent parents were regarded as particularly problematic, and involved greater focus on face management than for other groups of parents. Generally, interactions with minority groups were based on a narrower range of strategies, and were more intergroup than interpersonal in focus.

Conclusions: Our findings show the importance of studying health professionals’ perceptions of interactions with people from different minority groups. We discuss the implications for our understanding of communicating with diverse patients and families, and educating health professionals, including the utility of communication accommodation theory as a guiding framework for training.

KEYWORDS:

• Adolescent parent
• neonatal nursing
• healthcare communication
• communication accommodation theory
• cultural diversity
• linguistic diversity
• cultural competence
• culturally effective care
• family-centered care
• bias

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Liz Jones, PhD (Uni of Qld), is an Associate Professor and Director of Organisational Psychology. Her research interests are in an intergroup approach to health and organisational communication, and Communication Accommodation Theory. She is interested in both health practitioner-patient communication and interprofessional practice, with a particular interest in giving voice to those from non-dominant groups.

Nicola Sheeran, PhD (Griffith Uni), is a lecturer in psychology and a clinical psychologist. Her research focuses on women and family mental health, and the intersection of clinical, health and social psychology. Current research interests include communication between adolescent mothers and health professionals, long term outcomes for adolescent mothers, and stereotypes, attitudes, stigma and discrimination of adolescent parents.

Hanna Lanyon, BPsychSci Hons (Griffith Uni), is undertaking her Masters in Clinical Psychology at Queensland University of Technology. Her Honours thesis investigated nurses’ perceptions of effective and ineffective interactions with teenage mothers in the newborn care unit. Findings from her thesis are included in this paper.

Karina Evans, BPsychSci Hons BCrim (Griffith Uni), works for Queensland Corrections. Karina’s Honours thesis investigated nurses’ perceptions of communicating with culturally and linguistically diverse parents in the neonatal nursery. Findings of her thesis are included in this paper.

Tatjana Martinovic, PhD (Griffith Uni), works for Queensland Health. Her interests are in improving health service delivery and effective interprofessional practice.

ORCID

Nicola Sheeran http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0527-8549