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Motivational Interviewing: Practical Strategies for Nurses

What is Motivational Interviewing (MI) and how should nurses use it? At its heart, MI aligns with the foundational nursing theories of Peplau, Watson, and Polly Ryan. It is a way of caring, of forming therapeutic interpersonal relationships, and of supporting health behavior change despite life’s obstacles and barriers. As such, it is as founding member Dr. Bill Miller observed, MI is a “heart-set and a mindset.”

This five-part presentation is designed to help you learn Motivational Interviewing and how to effectively use it in practice. The core principles of MI and a case exemplar are used during each session. Focus will be on learning flexible, strategic interventions such as reflective listening skills and learning to recognize change or sustain talk. 

Participants are directed to engage in practice between each session and at the conclusion. It takes continued practice to improve effectiveness in using MI. After you complete this series of sessions, we encourage you to engage in other modes of learning to further increase your confidence level in using MI to motivate behavior change.

Presenter: Carol Essenmacher, DNP, PMHCNS-BC

Disclosures: The APNA planners and faculty have no relevant financial relationships to disclose. Off-label uses will not be discussed during this presentation.

Session Length: 3 hours 30 minutes

Target Audience: RN, APRN

Learning Outcomes:

1. Upon completion of this presentation, the participant will be able to identify three nurse-specific interventions to motivate behavior change.
2. As a result of each session, 70% of participants will report an increase in confidence in implementing Motivational Interviewing in their practice setting.

Keywords: MI, Motivational Interviewing, Behavior Change, Reflective Listening, Partnership, Compassion, Acceptance, Substance Use Disorders, SUD, Stages of Change, SOC

Nursing Continuing Professional Development:
3.5 contact hours.  *In order to receive contact hours, you must: Listen to presentation, earn a passing score on the post-tests, and complete an evaluation before the expiration date. You will have 5 tries to correctly answer the questions on the post-tests and a score of 80% is required to pass. Once you have passed and completed an evaluation, the certificate will be generated online, available for you to print immediately. You cannot earn credit unless all steps are completed. Partial credit will not be awarded.

The American Psychiatric Nurses Association is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.

Release date: September 13, 2023
Access to this course will end: September 30, 2026

© APNA 2023. Reproducing and distributing this material without the written permission of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association (APNA) is prohibited. 

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