What is a therapeutic environment?

Many of us will relate the question of what is a therapeutic environment to the field of nursing in which we are engaged. We are familiar with the environments in which we deliver care. Treatment regimens, clinical protocols, and nursing policies are available to us. Most of us are part of multidisciplinary teams where the complex needs of patients are discussed; the knowledge and skills of the respective health professionals are considered; and treatment and care plans are adjusted to ensure the continuous meeting of patients' care needs.

Familiarity with particular working arrangements and team working are persistent features of care environments. However, familiarity with the patterns and routines of a local working environment does not necessarily equate with competence, defined as:

‘The ability to do something successfully or efficiently. Competence indicates sufficiency of knowledge and skills to enable someone to act in a wide variety of situations. Each level of responsibility has its own competence requirements …’