Our ability to communicate with others is what makes us the smartest being on the earth. But when it comes to healthcare practices, communication process often takes the back seat. Whether it is the healthcare professionals or the patients, a lack of communication (which is often termed as “communication gap”) can affect both the parties.
In most cases, the healthcare practitioners are found guilty for breeding the communication gap. Evidence suggests that communication skills of a healthcare professional have a massive influence on the patient’s capacity to abide by the medical recommendations. In fact, an improved level of communication between the practitioner and a patient can help the patient adopt preventive health behaviors as well.
Numerous studies have revealed that the communication skills of a healthcare practitioner can not just ensure the patient satisfaction, but also educate the patient about the problem and help him learn about the preventive measures. In other words, it can make healthcare practices even easier for the professionals as well as the patients.
According to Institute for Healthcare Communication, the healthcare sector can achieve a number of positive results if effective communication can be established in the healthcare sector. The results include the following:
Accuracy in the diagnostic decisions
Proper communication between the healthcare professional and the patient can allow them to make more accurate diagnostic decisions. When the patients are not provided with enough opportunity or time to share their experience regarding a particular health issue, the communication gap can affect the diagnostic accuracy.
Needless to mention that when a healthcare professional does not hear the whole story from the patient, he/she makes the clinical decisions based on that incomplete data. This communication gap usually occurs due to an interruption from the healthcare professional’s end.
When a patient is stopped from sharing his side of the story, it makes them believe that their story has no significance. This belief often compels them to take actions that do more harm than good. A proper flow of information certainly can prevent that from happening.
Adherence to the recommendations
Apart from allowing the patients and the healthcare professionals to make more accurate clinical decisions, streamlined communication between them can also ensure a higher degree of adherence among the patients for the recommendations made by the healthcare providers.
Non-adherence of clinical advice is a huge concern in the healthcare sector. In fact, a survey…
