Role of Interpersonal Interactions and Key Barriers to Effective Communication in Healthcare - Assignment Example

1. Interpersonal interactions are of crucial significance in our day-to-day lives, since such interactions are likely to have a profound impact on the manner in which we function. This is particularly true in case of health and social care workers because they are required to utilize and rely on effective communication skills to develop positive relationships with their patients. Studies have indicated that positive interactions between the health and social care workers or the carers and their patients help in improved job satisfaction and reduce emotional stress and burnouts (Adams & Bond, 2000; Coffey & Coleman, 2001; Payne, 2001). The health care workers utilise various types of interpersonal interaction methods, some of them are discussed below: Body language: Body language refers to the manner in which individuals maintain eye-contact, proximity with the patients, facial expressions used to communicate i.e., smiling or a stern face, hand movements, posture, appearance etc. Talking to the patient while slouching on a chair with arms folded convey lethargic attitudes toward the work as well as disinterest in the patient and may hamper the communication process. Occasionally nodding while the patient is talking conveys interest in the patient and indicate the willingness of the carer to help the patient. Personal contact: Personal contact refers to one-on-one communication with the patient through texts or face-to-face communication. It also includes touching the patient but within a social care setting, such type of communication can be misconstrued as either aggression or offensive behaviour. Putting an arm around the patient while trying to console them may be perceived as agreeable or as a comforting gesture but coaxing a patient by leading them by the arm, may be perceived as intimidating and hence unacceptable. The carers must use appropriate gestures depending on the environment and refrain from offending or upsetting the patients. In this case, Prisca tries to lead Mrs. Roberts back into her house, by hand. This form of physical contact agitates Mrs. Roberts who threatens to report Prisca, thus indicating that the patient does not approve of being handled like a child by the carer, despite the well-meaning intention behind the gesture. Language: The language used by carers’ plays a key role in defining and shaping their relationship with their patients. Language must hence be used in a way that helps in developing positive professional relationship with the patients and any use of foul language or words that might be construed, as offensive must be avoided at all costs. Failure to use language properly may lead to misunderstandings and agitate the patients further, disrupting the relationship and rapport between the two. The carer in this case, Prisca, calls her patient ‘Auntie’ as a sign of respect. One of the most crucial elements of language is the tone of voice used to communicate. The carers must ensure that they do not sound unenthusiastic, bored or careless while communicating with the patients. The tone of voice must convey sincerity, which in turn will help the patients to respond positively to the carers. The key barriers to effective communication include: physical, perceptual, emotional, cultural, language, gender, and interpersonal barriers. Physical barriers: Mrs. Roberts is hard of hearing with the onset of dementia. Her medical condition restricts her ability to communicate effectively. Perceptual barriers: Mrs. Roberts believes that Prisca is not always honest with her, lies to her, avoids eye contact, and often and is always late. Due to these reasons she believes Prisca may not be able to understand her condition. Emotional barriers: Prisca is at the receiving end of Mrs. Roberts anger and emotional turmoil. She needs to overcome such emotional barriers in order to communicate properly with her patient. Cultural and language barriers: Prisca is a non-native and English is not her first language. Since there is a clear difference between the socio-cultural background of the carer and the patient, it may pose several challenges in communication. 2. The communication cycle comprises of six key steps which includes aim, compose /encode, transmit /deliver, receive feedback, analyze /decode/learn, change/improve. Understanding and prioritising the needs of the client is of utmost significance for the carers and one of the most crucial elements of ensuring effective interpersonal communication. Mrs. Roberts seems to be angry and agitated at Prisca for running late and then for lying about the cake. Lying is likely to lead to various misunderstandings and misgivings in the future and hence it is imperative to ensure that the carers are honest with their patients at all times and express themselves clearly (Engebreston, 2003). 3. One of the most effective ways of improving communication with people with dementia includes the MESSAGE strategy. MESSAGE comprises of various other strategies, and refers to Maximise attention, Expression and body language, Simple, Support, Assist with visual aid, Get their message, and Encourage and engage in communication (Youtube, 2012). Maximising attention is crucial because people with dementia are known to struggle with focusing their attention. Hence the carer must maintain eye contact at all times while trying to communicate with the patient. In this case Mrs. Roberts accuses Prisca of avoiding eye contact. This is clearly a failure to communicate with the patient, and hence it is important to ensure that Prisca improves her communication style by paying more attention to the patient and maintaining stable eye contact. Simple - It is important for carers to keep their sentences simple and minimise the information relayed to the patient since people with dementia often find it difficult to process too much information all at once. In this case Mrs. Roberts does not seem to hear Priscas explanation for being late. Also although individuals suffering from dementia experience difficulty in focusing or pay attention to detail, they are apt at reading body language. This is clear when Prisca is late and Mrs. Roberts seems agitated. The late arrival of the carer indicates disinterest and lack of compassion for the patient, which is a key barrier to forming effective communication with the patients. The patients with dementia increasingly find it difficult to communicate effectively through words or sentences. They are however able to communicate properly through non-verbal cues. The carers hence must pick up such non-verbal messages by observing the patients body language and gestures (Youtube, 2012). 4. Care and support structures refer to the additional help which the carers are expected to provide to the patients. This includes support in cooking, cleaning, washing, eating or going out. In this case Prisca is in charge of preparing meals, cleaning, shopping and ensuring timely medication to Mrs. Roberts. Prisca is an unqualified and untrained carer, which may be one of the key reasons for dissatisfaction of the service provided by her. Proper training could help Prisca in improving her service delivery and in understanding and responding to her patients needs promptly and effectively. The carers are engaged in providing services to patients with critical illnesses. Hence it is imperative to ensure that they are properly compensated and supported. The government in the UK for instance carries out monthly audit of carers of patients with dementia, across all hospitals to check whether they feel they are duly supported. This initiative was introduced by the Commission for Quality and Innovation (CQUIN). Similarly the carers can also be supported by providing them various benefits in the form of improved pay packages that would motivate them to stay in the jobs. The DWP in the UK for instance announced that the Carers allowance will be continued as a separate benefit over and above the Universal Credit. Such facilities afforded to the carers ensure protection of rights of the carers and motivates them to perform better in their jobs by improving their service delivery (gov.uk, 2015). References: Adams A and Bond S (2000) Hospital nurses’ job satisfaction, individual and organizational characteristics, Journal of Advanced Nursing, 32(3), 536-543. Coffey M and Coleman M (2001) The relationship between support and stress in forensic community mental health nursing, Journal of Advanced Nursing, 34(3), 397-407. Engebreston, J., (2003). Caring presence: A case study in communication, relationships an care. London: Routledge Publication. gov.uk (2015). Care and support and you [Online] Available at: [Accessed: May 23, 2015] Payne N (2001) Occupational stressors and coping as determinants of burnout in female hospice nurses, Journal of Advanced Nursing, 33(3), 396-405. Youtube (2012). MESSAGE communication in dementia: Strategies for hom carers [Online] Available at: [Accessed: May 22, 2015] Read More