Benefits of Communication

• Patients may disclose more information

• Enhances patient satisfaction

• Builds rapport between patient and professional

• Patient is more involved in decision making

• Leads to more accurate diagnosis

• Leads to more realistic patient expectations

• Better patient adherence to treatment

• Patient more open to seeking further treatment/care

Components of Communication

• Sender

• Message

• Receiver

• Feedback

Types of Communication

• Electronic

• Oral

• Non-verbal

• Written

Trends Following Communication Importance

• Mega Healthcare Systems

• Short Hospital Stays

• Confusing and Expensive Healthcare Costs

• Chronic Illnesses and Survival

Communicating with Patients

• Respect Patients when Communicating

• Address patients using first and last name (mr. LASTNAME)

Compassion and Concern

• If it’s shown to patients, results show have a faster recovery

• Neglecting compassion and concern can affect healing

Compassion and Caring

• Announce your presence

• Welcome the PT

• Ask if there is anything the patient needs

• Review what was done & next service

• Exit with a kind word

Communication and Patient Education

With compassion and concern, we teach to:

• Promote wellness

• Improve self-esteem

6-step Communication Process

• Sender: Set a goal (what do you need them to know)

• Create a message for the patient (objective and patient-specific)

• Deliver (how are you going to deliver w/patient specification)

• Listen, Wait, and Observe (check for what?)

• Receiver: Offer feedback & answer questions

• Sender: Evaluate, Revise, and Improve (did they get your message & do you need to restate)

Asking Questions

The patient states that they have pain

• Open Ended: needs more than 1 word to answer

• Close Ended: 1 word

• Leading: Leads towards a question, and multiple choices

• Probing: Probes for more answers (Asks more questions to gain more information out of your original answer)

Examples

• Open Ended: Can you tell me about your pain?

• Close Ended: Do you have any current health problems?

• Leading: You said you have pain, does it come and go or is it consistent?

• Probing: Where is it? When is it? Did you take anything?

Listening

Be an active listener

• Face the sender and make eye contact

• Clear your mind

• Don’t interrupt

• Do not judge (ITS NOT YOUR JOB), be objective

• Don’t complete the sender’s sentences

• Offer feedback (ask questions)

Non-Verbal Communication

• Tone

• Gestures

• Facial Expressions

• Touch

• Physical Environment

Barriers of Effective Communication

• Language

• Cultural Influences

• Defense mechanisms / angry

• Physical Distractions

• Sensory Distractions (hearing, vision, speech, confusion, disoriented)

• Medication Effects (drowsy, hyper, nausea)

• Pain

Gossip vs Communication

“One of the keys to avoiding gossip is learning how to change the subject of your conversation” -- Shawn Lim

• Say it’s unfair

• Say it’s inappropriate

• Change subject/get busy

• Smack yourself (theoretically)

Do not communicate to others about your PT unless they are need-to-know or you’re breaking the law

What can you actually do?

Change the subject, you don’t know, explain 2 sides to every story, state its not right, encourage communication

Barriers

• Pain/Cognitive impairment

• Physical Distractions

• Hearing

• Visual

• Angry/Defense Mechanisms

• Language/Culture

• Med Side Effects

• Gossip

Sympathy vs. Empathy

Empathy: Experiencing the feelings of others, you have personal experiences, emotion

Sympathy: Understanding the suffering of another, you acknowledge another’s circumstances, recognition