Crisis Interventions: Aguilera’s (1998) Crisis Theory

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The nurse needs to establish a soothing, comfortable environment to build a supportive, therapeutic relationship based on trust (Woolley, 1990). Timing is essential when providing counseling, and assessing the client's emotional state is essential, thus influencing her willingness to talk about her concerns (Michalopoulos & Michalopoulos, 2009). Reducing initial stresses by helping her to obtain a better perception of the situation and offering clear, simple explanations and solutions regarding her illness are efficient ways to relieve anxiety (Woolley, 1990).

The nurse should recognize the need for moral support. In crises, individuals look for family support, which is at times unavailable; therefore, the nurse can take this role. Emily's family is supportive but unable to visit her often because they live in a different city. The nurse can keep contact constantly with her family, and allowing Emily to use the unit's phone can provide her with the support necessary, hoping that her family can encourage her to eat and accept help (Woolley, 1990).

The healthcare provider, using therapeutic and active listening skills, can acquire personal knowledge and an empathetic understanding of the client's concerns and true feelings to develop practical interventions (Michalopoulos & Michalopoulos, 2009). Based on these insights, the nurse can establish the gravity of the situation and provide additional situational support by recommending a psychiatric nurse as a counselor while hospitalized or a support group to help her adopt new, effective coping skills (Woolley, 1990).

Additionally, the nurse can recommend and introduce into her plan of care an alternative, holistic approach, like Reiki therapy, which is considered helpful for patients with cancer to relieve anxiety, pain, and stress-related symptoms (Toms, 2011).

Conclusion

In this paper, the writer described a client in a crisis event and aimed to apply the Aguilera's model for crisis interventions (1998). The writer established that all balancing factors were absent and specific interventions were implemented.

References

Aguilera, D.C. (1998). Crisis intervention: Theory and methodology. (8th ed). St Louis, MO: Mosby.

Chase, E. (2013). Crisis Intervention for Nurses. Clinical Journal Of Oncology Nursing, 17(3), 337-339 3p. doi:10.1188/13.CJON.337-339

Michalopoulos, H., & Michalopoulos, A. (2009). Crisis counseling: be prepared to intervene. Nursing, 39(9), 47-50 3p. doi:10.1097/01.NURSE.0000360248.26070.9a

Toms, R. (2011). Reiki therapy: a nursing intervention for critical care. Critical Care Nursing Quarterly, 34(3), 213-217 5p.

Woolley, N. (1990). Crisis theory: a paradigm of effective intervention with families of critically ill people. Journal Of Advanced Nursing, 15(12), 1402-1408 7p. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2648.1990.tb01782.x