Facilitators of Professional Communication Between Nurse and Opposite Gender Patient: A Content Analysis

Introduction: Caring for a patient of the opposite gender is followed by many challenges. Hence, making an appropriate professional communication between the patient and the nurse is of great importance in order to provide a high-quality care to the patient and reduce tensions. Identifying positive factors in the formation of an appropriate professional communication can play an important role in preventing such challenges. Materials and methodology: The current study aimed to identify the facilitators of professional communication between nurse and opposite gender patient in Iran. A qualitative method and a conventional content analysis approach were used. A total of 25 nurses were included in the study by purposive sampling. Data were collected through unstructured and semi-structured interviews in hospitals of three provinces of Northwestern Iran, and were analyzed by Graneheim and Lundman method. Results: The results included seven categories and three main themes: prevention of misunderstanding, non-violation of therapeutic relationship boundaries, and observance of the socio-individual context. Discussion: Despite accepting the difficulties of nursing care for an opposite gender patient, the results of the present study showed that paying more attention to, and carefully watching, the mentioned factors could enhance the chance to establish a proper professional communication between a nurse and an opposite gender patient, which is crucial in providing a high quality care, also improving nurses' comfort in their work environment. Therefore, it is recommended to consider these factors in academic and in-service training of nurses.