Discuss one of the following situations you have experienced.  Reflect on the experience.  How did you respond?  How did you feel?

One of the situations I have experienced was when a patient became agitated and yelled at me while I was trying to help them. Initially, I felt intimidated and unsure as to how best respond to this sudden outburst. Afterwards, however, I realized that my response should be guided by my focus on providing quality care and maintaining professionalism. Therefore, instead of reacting defensively or escalating the situation further, I chose to remain calm and address their concerns respectfully. This allowed us to eventually reach an understanding and both parties were able to move forward with our interaction more positively.

In hindsight, my reaction could have been even better if I had taken additional steps such as asking open-ended questions or offering reassurance that their feelings were valid before attempting any kind of resolution. In the future, if faced with a similar situation again then I would try to use active listening techniques in order to gain clarity about why the patient is feeling frustrated or upset before responding directly. Additionally, maintaining empathy for their experience will go along way in fostering a respectful dialogue which can ultimately lead to better outcomes for all involved.