Memo To Support the Adoption of Active Listening in Medical Practice

You may be familiar with passive listening, passive listening is where an is involved in a conversation however, multitasking by listening to several different conversations or events happening in the background (Bell & Smith, 2010; Jennings, 2012). There has been perhaps a number of times you have slipped into this passive state of attention it seems as if you are actively listening to a conversation but truly, there are other things happening that seem to be more worthy of your attention (Jennings, 2012; Scanlan, 2011).

Communication in the healthcare field may be a little different for some people. Healthcare requires the communication to have a purpose, and that purpose is revolved around a person’s needs. A patient with good staff communication during

Active listening is the main key for understanding any kind of communication. Active listening means more than just hearing words. It means understanding what someone else is saying by making eye contact, body language and verbal responses.

active listening is about giving your full attention and watching not just what is being said but how its being said. This can be observed by watching their body language, gestures and other signals.

Communication promotes knowledge within a health care organization and is necessary for the organization to thrive. Communication is not only important to the staff but also to the patients within a health care facility who depend on staff communication to receive quality medical care. Without complete communication between staff member’s clinical errors can occur and the patient’s health could be at risk. In this paper the subject will explain how a health care organization shares knowledge through communication and examine, which are the most effective techniques and which techniques are ineffective. This

Therapeutic communication is seen as a complex skill that involves much subtlety and requires a range of different approaches (Jones, 2009). The importance of therapeutic communication and professional relationships with patients as a prime means of attaining healthcare treatment found to be the underlying theme in interpersonal relationships ( Arnold and Boggs, 2011). Therapeutic communication can create a nurse-patient relationship that enhances choice and responsibility, improves patient input and cooperation and thereby maximizes care outcomes (Rosenberg and Gallo-Silver, 2011). By integrating knowledge with compassion, the skill of therapeutic communication is regarded as the nurse’s greatest asset in reducing stresses and establishing a bond (Rosenberg and Gallo-Silver, 2011). Therefore, person-centred communication is regarded as the mandatory fundamentals in health professions (O’Toole, 2012). Attaining person-centred communication is often challenging and it is essentially required in health professions (O’Toole, 2012). One of the important basis for patient-centred communication is the effective listening (O’Toole, 2012). This essay briefly explains the various components of active listening skills that enhance therapeutic communication. Finally this essay concludes with a self-assessment of the current knowledge and skills that the author possess, followed by a development plan that shows the goals and strategies that can be used to improve author’s active

In Chapter 5, The Author discuss the role of pervasive role of confirmation and empathy in health care. Empathy is considered as an important part of the emotional intelligence which is defined as the ability to understand and manage emotions of yourself and people around you. Empathy helps to build trust and hope in patient -provder relationship. Empathy or "capability of emotional knowing" is a part of behavioral attribute that contribute to quality of social interaction. Author has informed about the Jafferson Scale of Physician Emapathy (JSPE), which is used to evaluate empathy in healthcare providers.

Communication plays a vital role in the healthcare setting, as the relationship with the healthcare professional sets the tone of the care experience and has a powerful impact on patient satisfaction. It is “the shared process in which messages are sent and received between two or more people which are made up of a sender, receiver, and message in a particular context” (cite, date). This essay highlights the importance of, and some common barriers to, effective communication in the healthcare setting. It involves many interpersonal skills such as effective observation, questioning and listening, giving feedback, recognizing and removing barriers.

“Extensive research has shown that no matter how knowledgeable a clinician might be, if he or she is not able to open good communication with the patient, he or she may be of no help” (Asnani, MR. 2009). Effective communication plays a big role in healthcare and contributes to the quality of patient care and teamwork.

How is active listening used to create understanding of opposing viewpoints? Active listening is used

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the different interdisciplinary methods of patient-clinician communication. This topic is important to me because having the ability to be effective in my communication results in satisfaction, fulfillment, quality, safety, contentment, and peace. After writing this paper I hope to learn the many different techniques and skills to increase and sharpen my level of communication. I hope this new knowledge will inspire me to continually keep an open mind, while being considerate, to all the different channels of communication that can be implemented into my practice. Nurses need to know the benefits of communication because in our profession we interact with patients during their most vulnerable states. Further more, these patients are frightened, embarrassed, frustrated, ashamed, and at times, lost. They are not capable of clearly articulating their needs and wants because of the encumbrance of emotions they are experiencing. Through effective communication of engaging listening and continual reflection we can help these patients express their feelings. Helping the patient to feel comfortable, safe, and in control will start the establishment of a trusted relationship allowing nurses the opportunity to make a difference.

Communication is critical in health care to both providers and patients. Effective communication can save people’s lives and help to make a provider more successful in their practice. The essential elements in communication apply to both basic communication and communication within health care. However, there are additional components needed to effectively communicate in health care such as preparedness, friendliness and sensitivity. Providers can inspire confidence in patients that may be reluctant to communicate and help them to communicate openly by developing a patient-centered approach. A patient-centered approach will also assist in dealing with cultural differences more successfully in the health care environment. Patient-centered

Although doctors’ communication competence rarely concerns patients prior to appointments, communication skills are needed to ensure a successful consultation. If a patient perceives a doctor as passive and unengaged in the appointment, frustration will inevitably result from the experience. To develop health communication skills, practitioners must excel in active listening and truly

Active listening is listening with a purpose. It is more than just hearing which the act of perceiving sound is. When you hear a sound or noise, you are receiving aural stimuli. Listening goes beyond just registering that there is a sound in the environment. It involves receiving and interpreting the aural stimuli, and creating meaning from the sound.

Active listening includes a variety of behaviors which communicate to the other that they are heard and understood, that the feelings which underlie the words are appreciated and accepted, and that regardless of what the individual says, thinks or feels, they are accepted as a person by the listener. Active listening demands that the receiver of the message put aside the belief that listening is easy and that it happens naturally and realize that effective listening is hard work. Good listening encourages the speaker, promotes trust and respect, improves relationships, and makes resolution of problems more likely. Good listeners are prepared to listen, show interest, keep an open mind, listen critically, resist distractions,