Verbal Communication Skills - Essay Example

351191 Verbal Communication Skills As a nurse in health care settings it is very important to be able to communicate well with patients. Oneof my weaknesses happens because I am a foreign speaker and I speak fast and with an accent. This means that some people will ask me to repeat myself. For this essay, I will focus on my speech, and how I can improve it within multicultural settings. I will also set an action plan for improving my skills in this area of communication (Appendix I). Verbal communication is an ability that everyone should develop to improve their interactions with others and to help them build relationships. In nursing, it is important because patients need to be able to understand directions and other information the nurse may be giving. According to Beyea (2004) "verbal communication is a primary way in which vital information about a patients status and care is transmitted" (p. 1). The Department of Health has also stressed the importance of verbal communication in their Essence of Care benchmarks. They state that communication should be adapted to meet the needs of people, carers and groups (p. ? ). I agree with this statement because as a student, I believe that learning better communication skills are important to my career. This is an indispensable part of my role and duty while in placement at University. I must take into consideration the sensitive cultural differences that can lead to misinterpretation of my words or other peoples words that can lead to bias. Whatever our clinical duty is, we need to focus on how we communicate because it will have a great impact on the quality of care we deliver. We must acknowledge our positive and negative attitude towards communication so that patients and professionals can have satisfaction in the clinical environment. As an example, Geeta and Long (2000) state that as professionals, the clinical environment can help us to become more effective in the complex interaction settings (p. ). Everything in our life depends on communication. Therefore, efficient and clear communication underpins and provides the best outcomes to the patient and to their standard of care. Verbal communication has been an issue for me since I had a tonsillectomy two years ago. My voice changed quickly and sometimes I do prefer not to speak which can be cumbersome when I need to do so. On the other hand, the melody of my speech and my accent is intrinsically linked to my mother language, culture and way that I was brought up. I recognize that my cultural ways do not always fit in with the society in which I am now living. As I understand it, cultural influences the way in which each individual perceives and response to the world. A persons culture will determine how people react to the world, how they solve lifes problems, and how they interact with the world. Williams and Davis (2005) define culture as, the sum total of behavioural norms, methods of communication, patterns of thinking, and beliefs and values of a designed group of people (p. 55). In my culture, we think before we speak and then speak after we have thought about what we want to say. We try to transmit information by using short sentences, which some times does not work when speaking with people from different cultures than my own. I realise that I need that I need to speak slowly and clearly so that I can be understood, and that my communication outcomes are positive. As an example, while I was in placement, I was sent to spend a day working with a specialist nurse in a different ward than I usually work in. In one area, there were three patients who were hearing impaired and I made a conscious effort to concentrate on my speech and to understand how I should approach them in order to be understood. I believe this is a part of holistic caring as Eliopoulous (2004) has stressed: holistic caring and nurturing of self-awareness of our weakness is a healthy balance and can increase productivity and fuller participation in clinical experience (p. ). I believe this to be true in the clinical sense and in the way that clinicians must communicate. I have found that the areas where I need to improve my verbal communication include: 1. I need to speak clearly and slowly to be understood. 2. I need to pay attention to who and where the information is being delivered. 3. I need to learn to reflect and listen to the emotional impact so that I can create an environment for positive feedback. 4. I need to reassure that patients understand the contents of the message I want to transmit. 5. I will speak directly to patients and learn to facilitate eye contact where appropriate. These are all skills that I must develop in order to be an effective communicator. To explore my verbal skills and their assertiveness, I will not eliminate other skills but I will incorporate them with all my other communication skills. I will also incorporate empathy and other introspective behaviours along with other values. Given the opportunity to improve my communication skills, with patients or the general public, I will identify my communication skills and eliminate those that are not helping me in my development in my skills. It is important for me to consider the different patterns of verbal communication between cultures, because there are and always will be differences in acceptable levels of verbal and non-verbal communication. I will address behaviour and displays of emotion that can cause problems with communication between patient and health providers. It entails the ability to deal with multicultural issues that can b e learned through impression management in order to create and maintain positive perceptions of myself and others. According to Collins (2009), "… effective communication is, therefore, more than delivery, quality, patient-centred care. It is also the vehicle through which patients involvement is optimised (p. ). In my point of view, his statement reinforces that verbal communication works two ways, within the information between the two people communicating. Sometimes to be understood depends on who you are speaking with and what the communication is to convey. The age, background and culture of the patient as well as their disease cane bring a different aspect to the conversation that one must take into consideration. As health carers, we need to be able to perceive whether an individual that we are communicating with is able and willing to communicate with us in a positive manner. Another aspect to be taking into consideration is the health care setting. Communication in this setting means that as a staff person, you will be communicating with other staff. Staff must understand that the tone and pitch of voices and the emphasis that we put on our words or phrases also convey meaning. The variety of accents can add richness to whatever language that is spoken. However, communicating is a highly individual activity that can be confusing to those who are not familiar with them and can be intertwined with other factors leading to misrepresentation as well as our verbal and non-verbal cues. These cues will be part of how we perceive a situation which in turn will define how people will behave in a situation. The challenge is that what a person perceives about a certain situation can lead to misinterpretations. What is believed about another persons underlying intentions will affect judgement about that person. When communicating across cultures, we can also use non-verbal cues that include gestures, facial expressions and signals. As an example, when I was doing my placement at a small community hospital, I was asked to help a deaf patient with his daily hygiene needs. I used a mixture of verbal gestures to explain the procedures and I found it interesting because he understood what I was saying. He was laughing at me sometimes when he saw me and I got the impression that he was happy with the care I delivered to him without ambiguity or excessive yelling involved. In other words, I understood that although he was deaf, we were still able to communicate easily. My verbal communication after the practice experience assured me that this type of communication cannot be totally independent from non-verbal communication because it may not always convey the message we want to transmit into different health care environments. We have to take into consideration the context we are in with the patient and their uniqueness in understanding. After writing this essay, I acknowledge that I can improve my verbal communication with time. By reflecting upon the barriers and the ways to over come them, I have identified my strengths and weaknesses within my communication skills. I have taken the necessary measures to improve my skills by setting feasible strategies and ethos to do so which I will improve during my pre-registration training. References Beyea, Suzanne C. (2004) Improving verbal communication in clinical care. Available from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FSL/is_5_79/ai_n6074289/. [Accessed: 5 January, 2010]. Caris-Verhallen, W.M.C., de Gruijter, I.M., Kerkstra, A & Bensing, J.M. (1999) Factors related to nurse communication with elderly people. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 30 (5), 1106-1117. Available from CINAHL database. AN: 2000009995. [Accessed 02 December 2009]. Christine L. Williams(2008) Therapeutic Interaction in Nursing Cross-cultural communication. 2nd Edition. London: Jones and Barrett. Collins, S. (2009) Good communication helps to build a therapeutic relationship. Nursing Times, 105 (24), pp.11-14. Available from [Accessed: 01 December 2009]. Department of Health. (2003) Essence of Care: Benchmarks for communication between patients, carers and health care personnel. Available from http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_4005475. [Accessed 05 January 2010] Edwina A.M. (2000). Communication systems make a caring connection. Nursing Management 31 (2) 49-52. Available from http www.proquest.com/ [Accessed: 01 December 2009]. Eliopoulos C. (2004) Invitation to holistic health. Toronto: Jones & Barlett. Geeta, C. and Long, A. (2000) Communication. Communication is the essence of nursing care 2: ethical foundations. British Journal Of Nursing. 9 (14). pp. 931-938. Available from CINHL database. AN: 2000060824. [Accessed: 01 December 2009]. Jasper, M. (2003) Beginning Reflective practice: Foundation in nursing and health care. Cheltenham: Nelson Thornes Ltd. Nursing & Midwifery Council (2008). The code standards of conduct, performance and ethics for nursing and midwives. Available from http://www.nmc-uk.org/aArticle.aspx?ArticleID=3056/ [Accessed: 01 December 2009]. Tongue, S. (2007) Every day brings a first impression. Nursing Standard. 22 (4). pp.59– 65. Available from OVID database. [Accessed: 01 December 2009]. Willaims, C.L. and Davis, C.M. (2005). Therapeutic interaction in nursing. MA: Jones and Bartlett. Available from http://books.google.com/books?id= xwOd0PcEdtoC&printsec=copyright&source=gbs_pub_info_s&cad=2#v=onepage&q=&f=false. [Accessed: 01 December 2009]. Appendix I Learning need Rationale Learning experience required Action to be taken Evaluation of outcome Speak confidentially and clear Listen to patients and make sure they understand me Take necessary approach to learn by listening to others Practice to talk clearly and slowly Improve all the time by reflecting Use others means of communication to reinforce my speech Speaking only what is necessary for the context Listening patently to others when they are speaking. Looking their body language to understand their message Be aware of my self weakness while speaking and try to be fluent If aware that the flow of my message is not correct and clear, improve it by seeking help Think first and speak after Make sense about the meaning of my conversation Adapt my speech by listening and learning the language standard Phrase the contents of the speech Accordingly with client level of understanding before speaking I must not Speak half words. Improve constantly my communication skills, by listening feedback (2065) Gibbs model of reflection (1988) Read More

In my culture, we think before we speak and then speak after we have thought about what we want to say. We try to transmit information by using short sentences, which some times does not work when speaking with people from different cultures than my own. I realise that I need that I need to speak slowly and clearly so that I can be understood, and that my communication outcomes are positive. As an example, while I was in placement, I was sent to spend a day working with a specialist nurse in a different ward than I usually work in.

In one area, there were three patients who were hearing impaired and I made a conscious effort to concentrate on my speech and to understand how I should approach them in order to be understood. I believe this is a part of holistic caring as Eliopoulous (2004) has stressed: holistic caring and nurturing of self-awareness of our weakness is a healthy balance and can increase productivity and fuller participation in clinical experience (p. ). I believe this to be true in the clinical sense and in the way that clinicians must communicate.

I have found that the areas where I need to improve my verbal communication include: 1. I need to speak clearly and slowly to be understood. 2. I need to pay attention to who and where the information is being delivered. 3. I need to learn to reflect and listen to the emotional impact so that I can create an environment for positive feedback. 4. I need to reassure that patients understand the contents of the message I want to transmit. 5. I will speak directly to patients and learn to facilitate eye contact where appropriate.

These are all skills that I must develop in order to be an effective communicator. To explore my verbal skills and their assertiveness, I will not eliminate other skills but I will incorporate them with all my other communication skills. I will also incorporate empathy and other introspective behaviours along with other values. Given the opportunity to improve my communication skills, with patients or the general public, I will identify my communication skills and eliminate those that are not helping me in my development in my skills.

It is important for me to consider the different patterns of verbal communication between cultures, because there are and always will be differences in acceptable levels of verbal and non-verbal communication. I will address behaviour and displays of emotion that can cause problems with communication between patient and health providers. It entails the ability to deal with multicultural issues that can b e learned through impression management in order to create and maintain positive perceptions of myself and others.

According to Collins (2009), "… effective communication is, therefore, more than delivery, quality, patient-centred care. It is also the vehicle through which patients involvement is optimised (p. ). In my point of view, his statement reinforces that verbal communication works two ways, within the information between the two people communicating. Sometimes to be understood depends on who you are speaking with and what the communication is to convey. The age, background and culture of the patient as well as their disease cane bring a different aspect to the conversation that one must take into consideration.

As health carers, we need to be able to perceive whether an individual that we are communicating with is able and willing to communicate with us in a positive manner. Another aspect to be taking into consideration is the health care setting. Communication in this setting means that as a staff person, you will be communicating with other staff. Staff must understand that the tone and pitch of voices and the emphasis that we put on our words or phrases also convey meaning. The variety of accents can add richness to whatever language that is spoken.

However, communicating is a highly individual activity that can be confusing to those who are not familiar with them and can be intertwined with other factors leading to misrepresentation as well as our verbal and non-verbal cues.

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