I am presently employed as an enrolled nurse on the bank of a large general trust hospital in the north west of England. I qualified as an enrolled nurse in 1972. At present I work on a male medical ward, which has twenty-five beds. Some common disorders which patients suffer from in the area where I work are: Complication of Diabetes, Chronic Pulmonary Disease, Chest infections, Hypertension, Chronic confusion. I estimate that 80% of our patient fall …showed first 75 words of 1526 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1526 total…later in this study I will look at this area in greater detail. For me communication and confidentiality stand out at all times. We only have to look at the Potters Bar train crash where the engineers failed to check the correct lines due to a break down in communication. This resulted in many avoidable deaths. The words of Covey (1999) "understand before seeking to be understood" are of great importance. Listening is critical to understanding.