Biography
Biography: Charmaine Attard
Abstract
In this day and age where technology has taken over a large part of our lives, the thirst for actual physical human interaction is growing. The statistics show that in a world full of social media, people are actually lonelier.
However is physical interaction easy to implement? In a world where professionals are afraid of being sued for the wrong move, where they are afraid that actions may be misread and taken badly, how easy it is to perform this interaction through actions like touch? As a nurse, I have personally gone through life being taught that as a nurse’s touch is one of the best ways to comfort a person. A pat on the shoulder, a hand held, a hand placed on the arm…..all can say a thousand unsaid words and portray up close that a professional really cares and is there for you. However, just last February (2019) the Medical Defence Union in the UK (MDU) advised its doctor members that “Doctors must be able to comfort and show human compassion to their patients, but physical contact can easily be misinterpreted particularly if coupled with other words or actions the patient may feel are inappropriate” This in turn may result in a complaint against a doctor.
In contrast a new industry is blooming which provide professional “cuddlers” whilst others have built “tranquility chairs” which embrace a person sitting in it. What have we come to and where are we heading professionally? Are we becoming as Cocazza (2018) states a “touch-averse” society”? And if we are, to what end? What are the repercussions of going down this road?
At birth babies bond better when they are cuddled and held close by their mothers, children run for comfort in the arms of loved ones when they fall or are upset, friends hug each other or hold each other when passing through difficult moments. Linden (2016) talks about a child that can be born deaf or dumb and yet grow emotionally and physically well, however if deprived from touch will not only suffer from emotional and psychiatric difficulties but from physical conditions too. So how can we become as Francis (2014) states “touch averse”? When it is such a source of comfort. He goes on to say that that he is concerned as “…this lack of touch is not good for mental health”. In a world where mental illness is already on the rise this is truly worrying.
However in today’s society, where we are very sensitive about boundaries, it makes it hard to find the right way forward. I teach my nursing students that touch is comforting. I mentor my staff that touch can comfort and console the dying and the distressed. Yes, touch can sometimes be misinterpreted and yes we need to be vigilant when we use it because of culture, maybe confusion like in the case of dementia, or gender differences. But it cannot be something we abolish or something we do not practice. The world is already too lonely for people not to connect through touch. I have seen patients slip away peacefully with their hand being held by a professional. I have seen patients consoled with a nurse’s hand around their shoulder while they cry after receiving bad news, a patient soothed with a caress, as they were in unbearable pain or holding the hand of a relative who just cannot bear seeing their loved one going through chemotherapy and suffering the cruel effects of the treatment. Some pain, medicine cannot relieve and when as professionals we are presented with certain situations, it is just the consolation of offering ourselves through touch which helps us, even as carers to cope. Personally these moments were the most beautiful moments in my career as a nurse, and they were why I chose to be part of a caring profession. If we lose the strength of touch or hide behind law suits or fear, then we have I feel, lost the very soul of caring and an integral part of our role as professionals.
As Keats said “Touch has memory” and if we want to create good memories for our patients and also for ourselves as carers then we must recognize that touch is and always should be an integral part of our practice.