Chapter 12: Communication
Overview
Brian is looking forward to volunteering in a small family medical practice over winter break. In addition to building his resume, he hopes to see the real “behind the scenes” action that happens in a doctor’s office. He loves watching medical dramas where nurses and doctors throw around big words and acronyms, even if he doesn’t understand half of what they’re saying. Maybe he’ll be able to pick up some impressive terms to share with his friends when winter quarter starts. One thing’s for sure: he’ll be interacting with people from many different backgrounds and abilities, and he’s focused on being mindful and respectful.
On his first day, Brian is introduced to all of the providers and staff. He shadows one of the doctors in the morning and helps the staff with their daily tasks in the afternoon. The morning flies by as Brian watches the doctor deftly provide care while building rapport and trust with her patients, some of whom require translation services, which are provided by the clinic. In addition to patient care, Brian observes the doctor connect with referring providers to update them on patient treatments and prognosis. After a quick lunch, Brian begins working with the clinical staff.
In the afternoon, Brian performs some of the duties typically handled by the clinic’s small staff. He helps with reshelving patient charts, filing medical records sent by other providers, and filling out patient visit superbills for providers. These documents allow the provider to enter diagnoses and procedures, which are then sent to the billing department for processing. When the clinic gets busy, Brian is assigned to answer phones and place callers on hold to help the front desk staff catch up.
In this chapter, you will learn how to communicate professionally with healthcare providers and patients from diverse backgrounds and abilities. We will explore various methods of communication involving interpreters or assistive devices. You will also be introduced to the concept of healthcare teams and communication skills necessary for collaborating with other professionals. Basic medical terminology and shorthand will be covered, along with simple medical charting templates.
Objectives
Upon completion of this chapter, the learner will be able to:
- Demonstrate communication skills that facilitate success in a culturally diverse environment
- Discuss methods of communication with disabled patients, including the use of medical interpreters (such as ASL interpreters) and assistive devices
- Explain the foundations of medical charting practices
- Create accurate SOAP notes for clinical case scenarios and address patients and providers appropriately
- Define basic medical terminology and shorthand to improve both receptive and expressive communication skills
Key Terms
- Assistive listening device
- Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) device
- Interpreter
- Nonverbal communication
- Referral
- Medical shorthand
- SOAP notes
- Therapeutic communication
- Medical Interpreter
- Verbal communication
Attributions
- Chapter opening image: Intense Color Coded Notes by Michael Mandiberg is released under CC BY-SA 2.0
