Ask an NP – Useful Characteristics

00:00 So when it comes to interacting with your patients and their family members, I think the most useful personality trait for a nurse practitioner to have is just openness and a lack of judgment.

00:10 I think it's really easy to walk into that situation and say like, "Well, this is what I would do." This is what I think is best.

00:15 But really, at the end of the day, that's not what you're there to do.

00:20 And if you go into it with a general spirit of just wanting to help them, lay it all on the table, and then find out how you can meet them where they're at, people are going to be really honest with you and share why they can't do what maybe you recommended or that you're going to learn a lot more about what they're really facing, which can even lead you down into other paths of their healthcare that they didn't share with you outright because maybe they were embarrassed or they didn't even think it was an issue.

00:48 And you're going to get a much better picture of their health overall, just by being really open, non judgmental, and making them realize that kind of whatever they bring to you is staying in that room. It's not going anywhere.

00:59 And even if they don't do what you say you're not mad at them, you're just kind of there to help them navigate the process.