Importance of Communication with Patients In a Healthcare Setting

This paper will address the importance of communicating effectively in a healthcare setting. It is extremely important that physicians and all medical staff communicate with patients. Communication is how medical staff, physicians and patients find out vital information.

The medical staff learns information about the patient and the reason for the visit. The physician learns more about the patient through conversation and addresses the reason for the visit. The patient learns information about the issues that are going on with him or her and how to go about solving the issues.

This can be considered a type of ongoing chain reaction. Everyone should communicate effectively with one another because without proper communication, we do not gain any knowledge. Healthcare facilities can use improvement in the communications area.

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There are ways to implement effective communication skills. Communication is a key factor in the healthcare field. Clinical or medical staff and physicians should communicate more effectively with patients. Having poor communication skills can cause serious issues between health care staff and providers.

“Poor communication skills within a health care setting can result in misunderstanding and faulty decisions that could adversely affect a patient’s health and well-being” (Ponte 2011). Poor Communication [Communication failure is a huge contributor in clinical outcomes.

A major part of information flow comes from communication between health care workers. Communication errors were found to be the main cause of hospital deaths. Communication infrastructure influences communication behavior within organizations.

Interruptive communication is one of the negative behaviors observed in poor communication (Parker & Coiera 2000). Poor communication can be turned into a positive behavior by adopting steps to communicate more effectively.

Poor communications can affect a patient’s health and well-being. Poor communication can also lead to provider and patient frustration. Having strong communication skills is a must for new practitioners. Written words are a source of poor communication. Getting help from mentors about how to be a good communicator would be a great idea (Ponte 2011).

Keeping a patient from becoming frustrated with a physician or a medical staff member can be handled properly if everyone communicates effectively with one another. When explaining things to a patient, it is best to make sure the patient fully understands everything.

There are additional steps one can take to help a patient understand and that could be as simple as giving out a brochure or pamphlet about the issue(s) or even giving the patient printed out documents that the patient can read. Also, addressing any questions and concerns the patient may have can be a type of effective communication.

Patient satisfaction can go a long way and if the patient is satisfied then the chances of that patient returning is high. Communication Importance [The article from http://www. apa. org tells why it is so important for patients to communicate with physicians.

Sometimes patients hold back from asking questions. Also, some feel intimidated so therefore they don’t really talk with the physician. Sharing information is an important component of health care. Research indicates that effective communication is tied to positive medical outcomes (Weir 2012).

Some patients may be a little shy to talk with the physician about health concerns. If proper communication skills are used then the physician may be able to communicate with the patient to get him or her to open up and talk about the health problems.

Gaining the sense of trust can help make a patient feel more comfortable. In order to determine what may be going on with your body you need to be able to communicate with the physician. The article from the Journal of the American Medical Association tells how some patients experience issues with physicians not listening because they are often too busy.

Effective communication with patients can take time, but it also requires that physicians take the time to listen closely to each patient. Some medical schools and residency programs don’t provide enough education about effective communication skills.

However, medical education on student and residency levels requires major efforts to enhance communication skills while in school. Even though science and technology has advanced over the past few decades the best medical care consists of knowledge in science and communication skills (Levinson & Pizzo 2011).

Not only is communication important, listening is important as well. One must first listen in order to communicate effectively with a patient about any issues or concerns. “But the core skill of good communication is listening” (Handzo 2012).

Some physicians do make you feel like they are rushing you to leave the office and some act like they are in a hurry for something more important. No one wants to go to a doctor's office or a hospital to receive care and feel like they were just there for nothing. Making a patient feel important and respected should be a priority.

Listening and Understanding [Communication is key, but sometimes easier said than done. Using words that patients understand is a big deal. You want to make sure to use words a patient can understand so that they actually do fully understand what you are saying.

Listening is a core skill for good communication, but good listening is about having a good understanding. Patients want to be listened to and most of all respected (Handzo 2012). Patients are more likely to understand their health problems if they can understand their doctors.

A physician’s relationship with each patient is built on effective communication (Travaline, Ruchinskas, and D’Alonzo 2005). Verbal and nonverbal communication are both necessary in health care. A physician who can effectively communicate bad news with a patient in a compassionate manner will be able to improve and strengthen their patient-physician relationship.

It is important for a physician to be able to communicate both positive and negative news with a patient (Travaline, Ruchinskas, and D’Alonzo 2005). Conclusion [In conclusion, communication is very important.

Listening is also important because you must listen in order to communicate. In healthcare, communication plays a major role. Everyone, including medical staff, physicians and patients must communicate effectively with one another.

Poor communication can create errors and misunderstanding. Having a good understanding about your health is important. If a patient does not fully understand something, there are ways to help them understand such giving the patient a pamphlet that covers more information about the issue(s) he or she is having. Effective communication can go a long way in the healthcare field.

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