1. Communicating with Patients
Chapter 8
Communicating with Patients
Communicating with patients will be a big part of everyday activities for the medical assistant.
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2. Role of the Medical Assistant in Patient Communication
Apply principles of effective communication
Actively listen
Help give quality care
Understand what patient is saying
Anticipate patient needs
Treat each patient as an individual
Encourages good patient-physician relationship
Discuss how communication affects quality care.
Review the concept of active and passive listening skills.
Why must all patients be treated as individuals?
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3. Focus on Patient Meets patient needs Establishes rapport
Satisfied with care
Establishes rapport
Feels respected
Provides a sense of security
Feels well-taken care of
Ensures patient compliance
Follow treatment plan
Discuss your feeling when you do not feel someone is listening to you.
What advantages are there to focusing on the patient’s concerns?
What are some of the consequences if a patient does not feel the office staff is focusing on him/her?
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4. Concept of Holistic Care
Deals with all the health needs of the patient
Physical
Emotional
Social
Economic
Spiritual
Define holistic care.
Why is the concept holistic care so important in the medical setting?
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5. Positive Communication Techniques
Discuss ways to utilize the techniques displayed in Table 8-1.
Share other examples of how these techniques can be used.
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6. Barriers to Effective Communication
Using Table 8-2 what can happen to the patient-staff relationship if these barriers are used?
Suggest ways to avoid using any of these barriers.
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7. Five Ways to Improve Communication with Patients
Use simple language
Encourage written questions
Communicate with patient at patient’s level
Individualizes care
Identify barriers for noncompliance
Observe for problems with understanding
Admit to not knowing everything
No one knows everything
What can happen to the communication process if these are not used?
Do you agree or disagree with this statement: “A person cannot know everything.” Why or why not?
What would you do if you did not know the answer to a patient’s question?
So you agree or disagree with the statement, “A person cannot know everything.” Why or why not?
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8. Categories of Patient Complaints
Administrative complaints
Unhappy with staff
Miscommunication about billing
Long waiting time; slow telephone response
Medical complaints
Dissatisfaction with appointment access
Poor referral follow-up
Quality of service by physician or clinical personnel
Limitation or denial of benefits
What perception does the patient have of the health care team when a patient’s complaints are handled immediately?
How important is your body language when a patient is complaining about his/her care?
Discuss how you would handle a patient’s complaint about a billing issue.
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9. Handling Patient Complaints
Take all complaints seriously
Can lead to a lawsuit
Be tactful and nonoffensive
Listen to patient
Alert physician and/or office manager
May be able to diffuse situation
Report and document negative statements made by patient
Why is it important to take all patients’ complaints seriously?
What type of body language should you avoid when a patient is complaining?
How would you show the patient that you are taking the complaint seriously?
Why is it important to not argue with the patient?
Why is it important for the medical assistant to remain professional when the patient is angry?
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10. Establishing Trust with Patients of Different Cultures
Respect cultural beliefs
Involve patient and family in decision-making process
Ask patient’s opinion, encouraging discussion of care
Do not question patient’s beliefs
Be sensitive to patient’s needs
Demonstrate active listening
Discuss the importance of respecting cultural beliefs regarding health care.
How do cultural beliefs affect a patient’s health care?
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11. Accepting Different Cultures
Eliminate stereotyping and discrimination
Examine your feelings
Show respect for patient’s point of view
Everyone is an individual
Be nonjudgmental
Keep an open mind
Listen to patient
May learn something
Define stereotyping.
Define discrimination.
Give an example of how a medical assistant can display being open-minded.
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12. Caring for Patients with Special Needs
Develop empathy
Put yourself in patient’s situation
Use tact
Helps to reduce anxiety
Be helpful
Don’t rush
Ask if patients need help before helping them
How do empathy and sympathy differ and how are they alike?
Give an example of being tactful.
Why must the medical assistant always ask permission to help a patient?
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13. Caring for the Visually Impaired
Identify extent of disability
Totally or partially blind
Explain procedure before beginning
Reduces anxiety
Protect patient from injury
Be specific with directions
Provide patient with appropriate disability aids
Large print, audio cassettes
Speak in normal voice: visually impaired NOT hearing impaired
How would you go about explaining to a visually impaired patient his or her surroundings?
Why is it important to always explain the procedure to a patient prior to doing it?
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14. Caring for the Hearing Impaired
Identify extent of disability
Directly face patient when speaking
Speak clearly, using natural tone and rate
Use hand gestures when appropriate
Use visual examples and reading material
Involve family members in patient care
Explain ways to communicate to a hearing impaired patient.
Why do visual examples help to communicate the idea?
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15. Caring for Patients with Physical Disabilities
Individualize care
Encourage realistic goals
Treat patient with respect
Help patient become as independent as possible
Why must patient care be individualized, especially when dealing with patients with disabilities?
What types of physical disabilities might you encounter in a medical setting?
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16. Caring for the Older Adult
Speak clearly and slowly
Realize that hearing loss occurs in aging
Don’t shout or demoralize
Be an empathic listener
Shows patient recognition of problem
Be patient
Realize that one day you too will be an older adult
What is the most important quality a medical assistant must have when caring for the older adult? Why?
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17. Communicating with Elderly Patients
There are many guidelines to follow when communicating with the older adult; which one do you find the most important? Why?
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18. Caring for Pediatric Patients
Communicate at their level of understanding
Be familiar with growth and development stages
Recognize that unfamiliar experiences frighten children
Communicate effectively with parents
Why is it important to be at eye level when speaking with a pediatric patient?
Why is it important to build a rapport with a child before performing any procedure on him or her?
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19. Communicating with Children
Review growth and development stages of children.
What guideline do you find to be the best when caring for pediatric patient’s? Why?
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20. Communicating at the Patient’s Level of Understanding
Assess patient
Verbal and nonverbal
Allow time
Recall
Processing
Provide information
Small
Manageable portions
Don’t overload
What is happening to the communication process when a patient feels rushed?
Why is feedback from a patient important?
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21. Caring for Mentally Impaired Patients
Patient learning
Repetition
Habit
Atmosphere
Relaxed
Not stressful
Increases cooperation
Include caregiver
Treat patient with respect
Define developmentally delayed.
Why is it important to include the caregiver in all discussions about health care?
Why must the atmosphere be relaxed and non-distracting when dealing with mentally impaired patients?
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22. The Developmentally Delayed Patient
Behind in maturation
Not in chronological age
Areas of functioning involved
Mental ability
Physical
Social
Emotional
What is maturation?
Why must all areas of functioning be considered when caring for a patient who is behind in maturation?
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23. Caring for the Developmentally Delayed Patient
Communicate at patient’s level of maturation, not chronological age
Provide caregivers with a list of community resources
Support groups
Special day care
Why is it important to treat a patient at his or her level of maturation and not chronological age?
What resources do you have in your community for the mentally challenged?
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24. Effective Communication for Patient Teaching
XXII. Effective communication for patient teaching
A. All patients will benefit from the tips on effective communication for teaching
How will you know that a patient is ready to learn?
How would you provide positive feedback to a patient when teaching him/her how to give himself/herself an injection?
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25. Importance of Patient Education
Effective education helps patient understand:
His or her illness
Need for change and to comply with changes
Must meet patient’s basic human needs
Include various learning styles
Cognitive learning
Affective learning
Psychomotor learning
How can the medical assistant evaluate if the patient understands the process of changing a dressing?
Review Maslow’s basic needs.
Give examples of various learning styles.
Give an example of an open-ended question when trying to get feedback from the patient on something you have taught.
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26. Teaching Process Assess Make a plan Implement the plan
Identify needs of the patient
Make a plan
Address learning style of the patient
Implement the plan
Demonstrate steps needed for the skill to be learned
Evaluate the plan
Ask open-ended questions; determines patient’s understanding
How would you access the needs of the patient?
How would you access the learning style of the patient?
What is the value of having the patient demonstrate what he/she has learned?
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27. Conclusion
Communication: best tool the medical assistant can use in providing patient care
Treat each patient as an individual
Accept patient for who he or she is
Treat with dignity
How are your communication skills?
What needs improvement?
What are your strengths?
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