Nursing and communication: from patient care to the protection of their well-being

A nurse faces human suffering everyday. Besides the many complex procedures and technical competences they have to master, nurses in any department have to relate with patients and their sufferance and to communicate with patients' relatives. Communication is one of the main aspecific instruments which a nurse needs to be able to use. A good training in communication allows to have a positive relation with patients and their relatives and promotes nurse's well-being. Communication arouses intense and often negative emotions in nurses. These emotions, without an adequate training, can interfere with nurses' psychosocial well-being. The study aims to explore the connection between nurses' communication skills and attitudes, coping strategies, burnout and quality of life. We hypothesize that proactive coping promotes psychological well-being and reduces risk of burnout. We also, hypothesize the existence of a mediating effect played by nurses' communication skills and attitudes.