Chapter 6
The Language of Caregiving
GOALS
After reading this chapter, you will have the information needed to:
- Reduce inappropriate behaviors.
- Teach people in your care effectively.
- Use medical terminology, including abbreviations.
- Use your senses to make observations.
- Communicate accurate observations about people to other health care workers.
Key Terms
Clear language, respectful teaching, and accurate documentation ensure the whole team understands a person's needs.
Using Effective Communication to Influence Behavior
What you say and do can influence behavior positively or negatively. You may need to encourage appropriate behaviors (part of restorative care) and help reduce inappropriate ones. Communication—both verbal and nonverbal—sends powerful messages that shape behavior.
Verbal Social Reinforcement + Nonverbal Physical Reinforcement → Increase in Appropriate Behaviors
Table 6‑1 — Verbal Social Reinforcement
| Type | You can say… |
|---|---|
| Praise | “I really like the way you styled your hair.” / “Congratulations—your therapist said you walked farther than last week.” |
| Appreciation | “Thank you for helping me.” / “Thank you for helping Mrs. Morgan feel more at home.” |
| Encouragement | “Keep trying—you’re doing a little better every day!” / “You’re doing great—I know you can make it to the dayroom.” |
| Approval | “That’s right—you’re doing it exactly right.” / “I think that was a good choice.” |
| Recognition | “Let’s welcome our new group member today.” / “Let’s thank Mrs. Ryan for the wall hanging she quilted.” |
Reducing Inappropriate Behaviors
Care recipients may occasionally yell, spit, curse, or make offensive remarks. Your response must uphold the six principles of care: safety, privacy, dignity, communication, independence, and infection control. Never punish; instead:
- Step away and return when both parties are calm.
- Acknowledge feelings: “You seem very upset—would you like to talk about it?”
- Ignore attention‑seeking inappropriate behavior; reinforce appropriate behavior instead.
- Report harmful behavior to the supervising nurse—with specific facts, not judgments.
- Regulate: Breathe deeply; count to 10–20; take a brief pause if needed.
- Debrief: Talk to your supervisor while respecting privacy.
- Plan: Work with the team on a response plan if situations recur.
Communicating When Teaching
Teaching is both formal and informal. Your roles include reinforcing, teaching, and observing & reporting. People learn better when they can practice, relate to prior experience, understand the purpose, and feel respected.
The Teaching Process
- Assess knowledge, attitudes, and experience.
- Plan what to teach and how it fits into care time.
- Implement when the person feels well and the setting is quiet/private.
- Evaluate by observing performance and giving feedback; report outcomes.
Demonstrate first, then let the person try; give specific praise and corrective cues; allow rest; observe for safety.
Learning the Language of Caregiving
Healthcare uses precise terminology so that all team members share the same meaning. Many words are built from prefix + root + suffix. Learning patterns helps you decode new terms quickly.
Box 6‑1 — Forming Words
| Prefix | Root | Suffix | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| re‑ | use | ‑able | reusable | that can be used again |
| ab‑ | use | ‑er | abuser | a person who uses in an unacceptable way |
| ab‑ | norm | ‑al / ‑ality | abnormal / abnormality | not in the usual pattern / the condition of not being normal |
| co‑ | operate | — | cooperate | to work together |
| trachea‑ | — | ‑tomy | tracheotomy | cutting into the trachea |
| ana‑ | — | ‑tomy | anatomy | study of the body by cutting/dissection |
| physio‑ | — | ‑ology | physiology | science of normal body function |
Box 6‑2 — Forming Medical Words (Cardio)
| Prefix | Root | Suffix | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| myo‑ | cardio | — | myocardium | heart muscle |
| — | cardio | ‑ology | cardiology | science of heart function & disease |
| — | cardio | ‑ologist | cardiologist | specialist in heart disease |
| — | cardio | ‑vascular | cardiovascular | of the heart and blood vessels |
| — | cardio | ‑pulmonary | cardiopulmonary | of the heart and lungs |
Abbreviations save time and space (e.g., T & A, CBC, q, qd, q2h). Use only abbreviations approved in your workplace.
Using Your Senses to Observe
| Sense | Common Observations |
|---|---|
| Sight | Skin color changes; open areas; tremor/weak grip; limping; unusual urine/stool/sputum color; vomiting; not eating; squinting or bumping into objects; different expressions; altered breathing; asymmetry; bleeding or leakage from body/device. |
| Sound | Coughing; noisy breathing; complaints (pain, numbness, swelling); crying; absent response; unclear speech. |
| Smell | Unusual breath odor; unusual odor in emesis, urine, stool; wound/dressing odor. |
| Touch | Strong/weak pulse; warm/cool/moist skin; lumps under skin. |
Assessing Pain in Older Adults
Barriers include under‑reporting and beliefs that pain is “normal.” Ask about duration, location, nature (constant/intermittent; sharp/burning/aching/heavy/stabbing), and intensity (0–10). Explore radiation, triggers, associated symptoms, and changes. Record and report anything abnormal.
Reporting Your Observations
When in doubt, report—especially changes in mood, awareness, independence, vital signs, elimination, skin, appetite, and sleep.
Table 6‑3 — Fact vs. Opinion
| Fact | Opinion |
|---|---|
| “She is crying.” / “He weighs 250 pounds.” / “Dry cough present.” / “Did not eat dinner.” | “She must miss her dog.” / “He is overweight.” / “She must be sneaking candy.” |