A patient with antisocial personality disorder suddenly gets angry at a staff nurse for preventing her from entering the staff lounge. How should the nurse respond?
Explanation
•The nurse may encounter much resistance from the patient in identifying feelings and expressing them directly. Often patients do not recognize that they feel angry and may express it indirectly. The nurse can help them examine the relationship between feelings and subsequent actions.
•Actions such as being calming the patient and use of a non-argumentative approach will not be effective in patients with antisocial personality disorder. They often show acting out behavior, and can be manipulative. Swift, consistent limit setting can help to establish a functional and therapeutic relationship.