The authors emphasize the importance of nurses’ interpersonal relations and incorporate a theoretical perspective that promotes an understanding of the multiple dilemmas that patients and families experience in their journey of improving health and well-being. A detailed explanation of Peplau’s theory of interpersonal relations is provided, including the three phases involved in developing nurse-patient relationships, and the challenges associated with each phase are reviewed with a focus on interpersonal competencies. Peplau’s theory of interpersonal relations promotes a scholarly practice dedicated to the wholeness, complexity, and context of interpersonal relationships.
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