Communication Cycle Health and Social Care Essay

In health and social care effective communication a key skill all professionals should have when working with families, carers, children and young people. Having this skill helps to build trust it can also encourage the individual to use the services. Effective communication is essential when trying to establish and maintain relationships and it is a process that involves listening, questioning, responding and understanding. However there are many barriers that can effect how effective the communication is a few examples of these barriers could be: language, personality, visual or auditory impairment or a disability. In order to over come these barriers there have been many advances in the strategies that can help in situations where the

The Argyle’s communication cycle theory is process commonly used in the health and social care sector to explain how communication can be effective, this is a theory in which can enable a person to understand what is being said or wrote, and to be able to respond to the conversation appropriately. This theory has six stages and these include;

A man named Michael Argyle who was a social psychologist that researched human communication and discussions between people created the Argyle theory in 1972. He believed that interpersonal communication between individuals was like learning how to drive a car. Argyle first explained that human communication is a process that involves people sending and responding to messages in a non-verbal and verbal way. In 1972 Argyle created the ‘communication cycle’ and the aim of the communication cycle is for people to understand how communication occurs between them when they are one to one. The cycle is made up of six main steps and the steps involve, being able to understand and observe how people communicate. It is also about being able to reflect and listen to what the person is saying so that we understand and are able to respond to it correctly.

Communication involves information being sent, received and decoded between two or more people (Balzer-Riley 2008) and involves the use of a number of communication skills; which in a nursing context generally focuses on listening and giving information to patients (Weller 2002). This process of sending and receiving messages has been described as both simple and complex (Rosengren 2000 in McCabe 2006, p.4). It is a process which is continually utilised by nurses to convey and receive information from the patient, co-workers, others they come into contact with and the patient’s family.

This means that the sender has to think and assess the circumstances that they are placed in before they start to communicate. The sender transmitting the message needs to think about what and how they are trying to say the message. For example, in a doctor’s surgery, an idea will occur as the practitioner thinks about how he/she will communicate with the current patient. This allows him to communicate more

Effective communication is a process that creates positive results for the sender and receiver. A sender is the person who is delivering a message or information and a receiver is the person who collects and interprets said message or information (Yoder-Wise, Leading and Managing in Nursing, 2015, p. 322). A nurse leader must be both a sender and receiver to achieve a productive interaction. There are three main types of communication that a nurse leader uses. These techniques include verbal communication, nonverbal communication, and written communication. Verbal communication usually happens in person or over the phone and the message is conveyed using speech. Nonverbal communication involves facial expression, eye contact, tone, and gestures. Nonverbal and verbal communication are

1.1 The communication that takes place between two people (the sender and the receiver) is known as two way communication. The main feature of two way communication is the flow of information from both ways. This process is called a communication cycle as the process goes around in circles.

Michael Argyle (1972) looks at the cycle of communication which involves six stages this is about sending receiving and the decoding of messages between individual and also groups.

In order to communicate individuals have to go through a process with another person. This process is called the communication cycle because the

Communication is any form of expressing and receiving of messages between individuals. The importance of Communication in the nursing profession is to maintain high quality care for the patient but also maintain effective collaboration between professionals. Boykins, D (2014) states that the “registered nurse is expected to communicate in various formats and in all areas of practice”. Various formats include speaking to patients and coworkers as well as utilizing appropriate protocols and systems to effectively communicate regards to patient’s status.

This essay will highlight one of the key concepts of nursing .The concept that will be discussed in this essay will be communication, the reason for this chosen concept is that communication plays a vital role in everyday occurrences which defines how a situation is perceived by yourself, others and how communication is effectively handled . There will be a definition on what communication is also an evaluation of the chosen concept will be explored throughout this essay.

Each nurse also has specific ideas or beliefs about what information should be communicated during a verbal report. Valuable information may not be provided or may be forgotten (Casey & Wallis, 2011). Writing information down may help a nurse recall the data later, but if there is no consistent format for recording the information, it may be lost regardless. Interruptions, distractions, and the frequency of communications also may negatively effect the communication process and contribute to a nurse forgetting to share important information (Cacolice-Hildebrand, 2008). Active listening, which involves reflecting back a meaningful understanding of one’s message, is one of the most important skills in effective communication.

1.3 Review methods of dealing with inappropriate interpersonal communication between individuals in health and social care settings

Communication is a big role in the nursing environment. Being able to identify communication factors both verbal and non-verbal can help to see how messages are delivered and interpreted differently. It also helps to see if the non-verbal communications match the what is being said, as non-verbal communication is just as important as the verbal. This is also good practice for how you communicate with others around you and how well you can read others reactions to what is being said. Like if they understand what is being said or if they are just saying they understand when they don’t. an example of communication can be seen by the female nurse and the male police officer, the message that the female nurse was trying to give was not being interpreted

Therapeutic Communication has a huge impact on patients, whether, we, as nurses, see it or not. It is very important for a nurse to gain a patient’s trust. Many patients are already filled with sadness, nervousness and unsure thoughts of their current situation. Such thoughts may make a person scared to trust or open up to a nurse or doctor. Developing a close rapport with a patient can help to create a safe, warming environment, resulting in a positive experience throughout their time in the hospital or even nursing home. In “Therapeutic Communication”, Anna Lauria opens saying, “What we say or do not say can influence whether a client is able to quiet his mind, relax his body and initiate a healing response” (Lauria). Being a nurse, we automatically have the opportunity to create a strong influence on patients’ lives during, and even after, their hospital experience.