Many chronic illnesses can be attributed to an unhealthy lifestyle, but rather than point out all the things patients should be doing to improve their condition, nurses should consider engaging in motivational interviewing (MI). This approach involves supporting patients in making the necessary changes to improve their health and well-being, with a focus on building intrinsic motivation through partnership, acceptance, and compassion.

During an Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses (AMSN) webinar on Feb. 20, “Motivational Interviewing: Overview and Core Skills for Nursing Practice,” Deborah A. Lee, Ph.D., RN, NBC-HWC, NHC Chair of Excellence in Nursing and Director of the Positive Aging Consortium at Middle Tennessee State University, will explain the basics of MI and provide an overview of core MI skills. She will discuss the stages of change and how to evoke change talk, as well as the importance of listening, asking open-ended questions, and affirming and acknowledging patients’ efforts, among other things.

“MI is a skill set that takes practice and can be learned for nurses at any level of experience,” Lee says. Medical-surgical nurses and other providers working with patients who are struggling to make health behavior changes will benefit from the webinar. Participants will view a video demonstration of a patient interview and identify the MI skills used.

Of the medical-surgical nurses who attend the webinar and complete the evaluation, 80% are expected to learn at least one MI strategy that they can immediately put into practice. “MI is a tool for nurses when interviewing patients to partner and guide rather than just telling (directing) patients what to do, which we know doesn’t work with health behavior change. Having a conversation with patients about their health behaviors allows them to come up with their own reasons for why it’s important to change and makes it more likely that patients will make long-term, sustainable health behavior changes,” Lee says. “Nurses can use basic MI skills and understand the patient’s stage of change to make success more likely.”

The webinar recording is available to AMSN members for $10 and non-members for $20.