Final answer:
A Med Surg nurse should expect that a patient with a somatic symptoms disorder will likely be resistant to psychiatric help due to the difficulty in acknowledging the psychological aspects of their condition. The nurse's role includes building trust and supporting the patient to engage in appropriate mental health treatments.
Step-by-step explanation:
A Med Surg nurse working with a patient diagnosed with a somatic symptoms disorder should understand that the patient will probably be resistant to accepting psychiatric help.
Patients with this disorder often experience physical symptoms that cause significant distress and impairment but lack a medical explanation fully accounting for these symptoms.
As part of the care planning, it's essential to acknowledge that these patients may have difficulty acknowledging the psychological aspects of their condition and therefore might resist psychiatric interventions.
The responsibility of the nurse includes not only recognizing these challenges but also working towards building trust and providing support to encourage the patient to consider and engage in appropriate mental health treatments.
This may include strategies like empathetic listening, gradual introduction of the idea that stress or psychological factors can affect the body, and a collaborative approach involving the patient in health decisions, thereby possibly reducing their resistance over time.