Healthcare Communication - Annotated Bibliography Example

Methods to Improve Communication among Healthcare Professionals of Learning Astrom, K., Duggan, C. & Bates, I. (2007). Developing a way to improve communication between healthcare professionals in secondary care. Pharmacy Education, 7(3): 279-285. In this article, Astrom, et el., look at the ways in which communication breaks down amongst the different health professionals understudy. It also focuses on the techniques utilizable to improving communication between the healthcare professionals, as it is a critical part of the job they do.

The aim of this article was to come up with a suitable solution to help improve communication among the different practitioners in the health facilities. The study carried out in this article was set up in a London Teaching Hospital with a representative from pharmacy, medicine, nursing and therapy sections. The methods used to get data on what constitutes communication breakdown among the practitioners were one- to- one interviews and a focus group. This article is useful in researching on the different challenges that bring about communication barriers among the medical providers, as well as the preferred remedy to these challenges.

The authors indicate the use of a Joint Communication Note (JNC) as a preferred remedy where all the healthcare professionals will get and relay information from and to one another. This article is crucial to the research on the impact of effective communication amongst the healthcare practitioners. Through its findings, it may form the basis to the research though, not in its entirety. O’Daniel, M., Rosenstein, H. A., (2008). Professional Communication and Team Collaboration. Patient safety and quality: Evidence-Based Handbook for Nurses.

Retrieved from; http//www.ahrq.gov/qual/html.In this article O’Daniel & Rosenstein, have brought out the different techniques used to enhance communication among the healthcare providers. This article answers questions such as what ways would enhance communication amongst healthcare providers? What are the common barriers to communication amongst healthcare professionals? They have indicated some of the already used methods in healthcare facilities such as the Simulation- Background- Assessment- Recommendation (SBAR) technique and its effectiveness in enhancing communication.

They also propose another method Medical Team Management (MTM) that heavily borrows from the aviation model known as Crew Resource Management (CRM). The strength of this technique is that it was tested and verified at Eglin USAF Regional Hospital and with its advocacy on group formation it can be used in researching the methods to help enhance communication among healthcare professionals.Nemeth, P. C., (2008). Improving Healthcare Team Communication: Building on Lessons from Aviation and Aerospace.

Vermont: Ashgate Publishing Ltd.This book by Nemeth emphasizes on the importance of group work and socialization among healthcare professionals, which enhance effective communication. He understands the importance of better communication among the medical staff and how crucial it is in attaining success during diagnosis and treatment. In addition, Nemeth emphasizes the aviation techniques of enhancing communication and team building to be emulated in the medical fraternity to promote cohesion among the practitioners.

In the aviation industry, the use of Crew Resource Management (CRM) technique and some lessons from the flight deck operations to enhance communication and cohesion to avoiding the accidents occurrence. This book borrows heavily from the aerospace and aviation industry comparing the two industries (medical and aviation) due to the severity of accidents caused by miscommunication. Through this comparison, the author has effectively portrayed different mechanisms to counter communication failure among health practitioners.

This book is essential in showing the crucial importance of better and efficient communication systems among the high-risk area in the health facilities especially the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). It helps in studying the importance of effective communication among the healthcare providers.Prophet, S. (2002). Health Information Management Compliance: A Model Program for Healthcare Organizations. Chicago, IL: AHIMA. In this book, Prophet has outlined the importance of auditing information and safekeeping of data used by healthcare professionals.

The author understand how the healthcare environment is changing and the increased demand for more accurate coded data is vital to effective communication among the healthcare professionals. She emphasizes questioning to obtain additional information or for clarification purposes on some data to improve specificity and understanding of data. This leads to better diagnosis and treatment of patients. Prophet acknowledges that better information management helps the health practitioners improve their service delivery as well as in the retrieval of stored documents.

This book outlines the benefits of good data documentation in improving communication in the health facility as this leads to data completeness, clarification and consistency in operations. It is critical to the study of healthcare communication among healthcare professionals, as it recommends better methods of documentation of data, querying techniques and storage of information in the healthcare facilities. It would greatly help the healthcare professionals in the retrieval of stored data for referencing and counterchecking purposes.

ReferencesAstrom, K., Duggan, C. & Bates, I. (2007). Developing a way to improve communication between healthcare professionals in secondary care. Pharmacy Education, 7(3): 279-285.Nemeth, P. C., (2008). Improving Healthcare Team Communication: Building on Lessons from Aviation and Aerospace. Vermont: Ashgate Publishing Ltd.O’Daniel, M., Rosenstein, H. A., (2008). Professional Communication and Team Collaboration ch33. Patient safety and quality: Evidence-Based Handbook for Nurses. Retrieved from; http//www.ahrq.gov/qual/html.

Prophet, S. (2002). Health Information Management Compliance: A Model Program for Healthcare Organizations. Chicago, IL: AHIMA.