Citation

Finfgeld-Connett D. Issues Ment. Health Nurs. 2009; 30(9): 530-537.

Affiliation

Sinclair School of Nursing, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri 65211, USA. finfgeldd@missouri.edu

Copyright

(Copyright © 2009, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/01612840902722120

PMID

19657866

Abstract

The primary purpose of this qualitative meta-synthesis was to explicate a framework of therapeutic nursing management of patient aggression in psychiatric settings. Findings from 15 qualitative research reports were placed into an electronic matrix, analyzed, and interpreted using content analysis, memoing, and diagramming. Nurses therapeutically respond to patient aggression using one of two response styles, intuitive or emergent. Authentic engagement characterizes both of these styles and involves grounding the opportunity for interaction in the context at hand, reciprocity between the nurse and patient, limit setting, and teamwork. Conversely, two non-therapeutic response styles (inflexibility and disengagement) lead to non-therapeutic outcomes.

Language: en