Importance of Communication in Nursing

Communication in nursing is essential to patient safety, health and well-being. Because

nurses are at the center of patient care, it is their responsibility to facilitate dialog. As nurses
assume more complex roles and care for older and more culturally diverse populations, they
will need to strengthen their communication skills.
Why Communication in Nursing Is Important?

Without effective communication skills, serious errors that may cost patients their lives can
occur. According to STAT, poor communication was a factor in 1,744 deaths of malpractice
cases that CRICO Strategies, a patient safety organization, examined over a five-year period.
In one case, a nurse failed to tell a surgeon about the patient's abdominal pain and drop in
level of red blood cells after surgery; the error resulted in the patient's death. Another
report by The Joint Commission showed that miscommunication during patient transfers
contributed to 80 percent of serious errors.
Good communication skills are no longer just for patients but also fellow health
professionals. The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report calls for
nurses to become a key part of healthcare system redesign. The report recommends they
work as full collaborators with other healthcare professionals. Nurses are advising
healthcare policy-makers, designing information technology, acting as leaders and solving
problems. Success in each of these areas largely depends on communicating with others.
Important Communication Skills for Nurses
The following are simple guidelines nurses can follow to improve their communications
skills.
Be Flexible
Every person has a preferred method of communicating, whether in-person, by phone or via
the internet. Health Professions Education: A Bridge to Quality recommends that clinicians
communicate using their patient's favorite mode of communication, which is central to
patient-centered care.
Learn to Listen
Speaking and writing are only part of communicating -- listening is equally essential. By not
listening properly, it is easy to miss important patient information. Listening errors are often
the results of multitasking. When nurses feel their concentration slipping, they should stop
and refocus. Mindfulness is one technique people use to stay in the moment and improve
their listening skills.
Do Not Make Assumptions
Assuming a patient knows what you mean can result in costly
errors. TravelNursing.com suggests confirming that patients understand your directions.
Nurses can ask patients to repeat instructions, which can reveal any misunderstandings or
gaps in information.
Understand Cultural Differences
The United States Census Bureau estimates that the nation will become markedly more
ethnically and racially diverse by 2060. Understanding and communicating with people from
diverse backgrounds will be essential to providing effective patient care.
Read Body Language
Your demeanor, attitude and posture can affect a patient's perception. For example, the
Houston Chronicle says a nurse who looks at the time or makes little eye contact when
talking may indicate a lack of interest.
Strengthen Writing Skills
Communication includes writing as well as speaking. Depending on your role or specialty,
you may be responsible for a lot of writing.
Courses offered in the online RN to BSN program at the University of Texas at Arlington give
students opportunities to develop their writing skills. In Critical Thinking, Reading, & Writing
I (ENGL 1301), for example, students write analytical essays based on what they have read.
Communicating effectively with patients, other healthcare providers and stakeholders is a
basic nursing competency. As nursing becomes more complex, nurses will need to
strengthen their communication skills. Communication in nursing is imperative for optimal
patient care and preventing errors, and it will become even more essential as nursing
roles continue to expand.
Learn more about UTA's online RN to BSN program.

Sources:
Stat News: Bailey, M. (2016, February 1). Communication failures linked to 1,744 patient
deaths in five years.
CRICO (n.d.): Comparative Benchmarking System (CBS) Reports
Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare Releases Targeted Solutions Tool for
Hand-Off Communications. (2012, August).
The National Academies Press: (2011): In The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing
Health.
Health Professions Education: A Bridge to Quality. In National Academies Press. (2003).
Travelnursing.com: Kirschke, M. M. (2011). Avoiding Nurses' Biggest Communication
Mistakes.
U.S. Census Bureau Projections Show a Slower Growing, Older, More Diverse Nation a Half
Century from Now [Press release.] (2012, December 12).
Houston Chronicle: Williams, E. (n.d.). What Is Effective Communication in Nursing?

Link
https://academicpartnerships.uta.edu/articles/healthcare/importance-of-communication-
in-nursing.aspx#:~:text=Speaking%20and%20writing%20are%20only,they%20should
%20stop%20and%20refocus.

THE ROLE OF ACTIVE LISTENING IN HEALTHCARE

Listens with one ear.
Falls on deaf ears.

Goes in one ear and out the other.

What does each of these familiar adages have in common? They describe passive listening,
the act of listening without being fully invested in and tuned into the speaker. The opposite
of passive listening is active listening, where the hearer is fully engaged. Active listening
involves not only hearing words but also receiving, interpreting, and responding to the
speaker. An active listener pays complete attention to the person speaking. They note the
physical details of the speaker’s appearance, body language, expressions, etc., which play a
crucial role in relaying the fullest meaning of the message.

Active listening requires the listener to make a conscious decision and a commitment to be
fully present. While we may be reluctant to admit it, passive listening can become a habit.
We attempt to convince ourselves and others that we can listen effectively while investing
limited attention because we have mastered the art of multitasking.

In the world of healthcare, active listening is more than essential; it is critical. Healthcare
professionals need to “listen” with all senses engaged in picking up on the non-verbal clues
that will enable them to more accurately assess each patient or scenario they encounter in a
given day. The nature of emergency or life-threatening situations can make it more
challenging to engage every sense, yet such occasions present an even greater need to
utilize active listening.

Active, engaged listening benefits everyone—patients and their families, the professionals
themselves as well as their co-workers.
1. It eases fear and anxiety
An attentive, focused-only-on-the-patient healthcare professional can ease the fear and
nervousness of an anxious patient. By making eye contact, smiling, and offering a kind word,
rather than shuffling through paperwork or doodling on a notepad, a physician, nurse or
nurse’s aide can lessen the patient’s anxiety. Engaged attention demonstrates that you
genuinely care about the patient.

2. It earns trust and boosts confidence

When it’s obvious the healthcare professional is “fully connected,” patients feel encouraged
to share their concerns, disclose sensitive information, and ask questions. Attentiveness
earns the patient’s trust and that of their concerned family members. Patients who feel at
ease will often be more vocal and open to sharing their deepest concerns.
3. It lessens the incidence of misunderstandings
A focused mind catches inconsistencies and comments that could have more than one
meaning. A clear picture of the situation will emerge by reiterating interpretations of the
patient’s symptoms and the family member’s concerns.

4. It enables better care

While Sam insists that he is feeling okay today, the healthcare worker practicing active
listening will pick up on Sam’s paleness, the bit of a rasp in his slightly quickened breathing,
and the tremor in his hands. When every sense is engaged, a doctor or nurse will be able
to “read between the lines” and fill in the blanks with pertinent information not disclosed by
the spoken word.

5. It provides for improved medical outcomes

The typical hectic pace within healthcare multiplies distractions to the nth degree, creating
challenges that can significantly impact patient care. Healthcare professionals who are
vigilant about being fully engaged with each patient will find themselves delivering the best
possible care to each patient, resulting in the best possible medical outcomes.

Active listening is an improvable skill! By practicing active listening, not only will your
patients benefit, you will as well.

Link
https://www.leaderstat.com/knowledge-base/the-role-of-active-listening-in-healthcare

Medical Professionals Have Unique Communication Needs

Doctors, nurses, medical interpreters, allied health professionals, and other medical
personnel must be able to communicate effectively with colleagues, staff, patients, and
family members. Failure to communicate successfully and efficiently can result in life-
threatening and legal consequences which can affect the professional’s career.
Communication skills training, public speaking, and accent modification will provide the
foundation for an excellent career.
Professional Speaking Skills
In the medical environment, physicians who represent a department, office, or hospital
must communicate at various levels. Voice quality and speaking style should enhance one’s
image. Effective communication directly impacts the hospital or office’s image, patient
satisfaction, and professional relationships.
One-on-one coaching to assist the individual with presentation skills for conferences,
meetings, and daily communication is available. Video recording and analyzing
presentations are included.
1:1 coaching can assist physicians and nurses prepare for the speaking portion of their
licensing exams.
Accent Modification Training
Are you an international medical graduate or a foreign-educated nurse? Improve your
communication with your patients and colleagues and avoid miscommunication and medical
errors.
Accent modification and communication training will assist non-native English-speaking
professionals in reducing potential communication barriers and increasing quality, safety,
and productivity in healthcare.
What you can expect from the comprehensive Medically Speaking customized programs:
 Receive a comprehensive evaluation
 Learn strategies for improving pronunciation of medical and conversational speech
 Use correct stress patterns for words, sentences, and conversation
 Increase understanding and use of idiomatic language
 Understand various cultural communication styles
 Learn skills to improve work-related communication
 Improve effectiveness for patient/family/staff communication
As a result of this training, you can expect to see:
 Improved caregiver-patient rapport
 Better patient care outcomes and quality care
 Improved patient satisfaction
 Enhanced image of your hospital or department
 Diminished risk exposure
Individual or small group Medically Speaking programs are available. These classes are
conducted at your hospital/office or as virtual training.
What is addressed in communication training?
 Stress and Intonation patterns – reduce potential misinterpretation of critical
information, e.g., 15 mg vs. 50 mg
 Clear pronunciation – state medical information accurately e.g., “bleeding” vs.
“breathing”
 Idiomatic expressions and slang – reduce communication barriers, e.g., “He’s out of
the woods;” “I’ve had it.”
 Cultural Awareness – learn cultural communication differences that affect decision-
making, hygiene, nutrition, medications, compliance with a medical plan, family
constellations, and end-of-life decisions
 Effective presentation skills
Link
https://successfully-speaking.com/medical-professionals

Effective Communication Between Healthcare Professionals – Best Practices

Effective communication between healthcare professionals is critical for timely and effective
operations. In a modern healthcare environment, communication technologies are critical
for connecting healthcare professionals with other caretakers and healthcare entities,
ensuring the best, most effective, immediate care to patients.
This article examines the impact of technology on effective communication between
healthcare professionals, and how to leverage technology to improve patient care and meet
business goals.
In this article, you will learn:
 What is effective communication in healthcare
 The impact of technology on healthcare communication
 Three must-have components of healthcare communication technologies
 Four ways to improve communication in healthcare
What Is Effective Communication in Healthcare?
Effective communication between healthcare professionals should be clear, timely and
discrete. This communication is needed to make accurate diagnoses, ensure that treatments
are appropriately provided, and to ensure that patients understand health status and
needs.
Often, effective communication in healthcare settings involves the ability to express
complex or technical terms in a way that can be universally understood. It also involves
bidirectional communication. For instance, healthcare professionals need to interpret and
apply the information provided to them by other staff as well as communicate what actions
they have taken.
The Impact of Technology on Healthcare Communication
In the modern healthcare environment, organizations have effective communication
practices, handoffs between providers are smoother, workflows are clearer, audit trails are
in place, and everyone knows who is on call. This is seen clearly in digital on-call scheduling
versus legacy on-call scheduling processes.
Previously, operation managers created manual spreadsheets to manage on-call schedules
of healthcare providers. Operators would then manually alert on-call providers through
phone or pager. This process created waste and took a great amount of time between
managing spreadsheets, ensuring that all are using the latest on-call schedules, and alerting
providers about their on-call status. As a result, providers were unable to provide timely,
proficient care to patients.
With digital tools, organizations can schedule the on-call physician and send automated
alerts directly to the physician’s HIPAA-compliant pager replacement mobile app. Effective
communication in healthcare increases accountability and allows providers to be more
effective, improving patient care.
Three Must-Have Components of Effective Healthcare Communication
Three components are vital to ensure effective communication among healthcare
providers:
 HIPAA-compliant secure texting with audit trails and visible staff availability
 Automated scheduling with automated alert escalations
 Mass communications to distribute a message to the larger ecosystem
HIPAA-Compliant Texting
Sensitive patient information including names, birthdates, health conditions and treatments
need to be kept confidential. Without the right tools, these requirements can make secure,
efficient communications difficult or impossible to achieve.
Part of meeting HIPAA requirements is limiting data storage and transmission to a few
standardized formats. This issue prevents healthcare organizations from using common
communication methods but can be solved with HIPAA-compliant texting apps.
Providers and professionals can securely share information, files or instructions related to
patients without fear of breach or loss of confidentiality. Compliant texting apps also
provide organizations the opportunity to do away with pagers in exchange for two-way
communications. Moreover, the apps are equipped with high and low-priority alerts,
allowing providers to distinguish between important and less severe incidents.
HIPAA-compliant texting tools enable bring your own device (BYOD) and all the current
messaging features available on modern messaging applications, such as message status
notifications, picture and voice file attachments, and visibility into message participant
availability.
Automated On-Call Scheduling
Automated on-call scheduling systems enable care teams to establish 24/7 patient
coverage. Organizations can use these tools to ensure that the right person is available
when needed. Tools can help ensure that those who aren’t on call aren’t improperly
contacted, protecting staff from burnout.
Scheduling tools help ensure that contact information is readily available when needed.
Schedule configurations determine who is on call, while ensuring that on-call responsibilities
are fairly distributed. These systems can also ensure that on-call staff are contacted through
their preferred channels, decreasing the likelihood of missed alerts.
The automated scheduler allows for definition of roles, meaning that patients or staff
members always contact the same role (e.g., “cardiology on call”) and the messages get
routed to the specific on-call provider’s device at that day and time. It also allows for
automatic escalation to a secondary provider after a preset amount of time, if the primary
one is not available.
Mass Notification Systems
Mass notification systems (MNS) are platforms that organizations can use to distribute
information broadly. For example, letting teams know about scheduling changes or an entire
hospital know about emergency situations.
When using mass notification systems, there are two main use cases that healthcare
organizations can benefit from:
 Immediate notifications—healthcare officials or team leads can pre-set template
messages that can be blasted out to a team or the entire ecosystem on demand,
using a couple of keystrokes. Messages are sent via native email, SMS and/or phone
call. These notifications should not include PHI, as these messages are not
transmitted via a secure channel. The recipients of the mass-notification message
can acknowledge the information and reports can be run.
 Tracking whereabouts—systems can be combined with RFID tags to help teams
track patients or equipment. This is especially useful in organizations that serve
patients who may wander off, such as those with dementia. It can also benefit teams
with limited supplies of essential equipment, such as expensive scopes or diagnostic
devices. In combination, tags can trigger notification systems to alert caregivers or
notify providers of the location of equipment they may need.
Four Ways to Improve Communication in Healthcare and How Technology Can Help
The importance and long-reaching effects of communication for healthcare professionals
make it an important focus for any organization looking to improve their practices and
reputation. Below are a few practices to incorporate when optimizing your own
communication strategies.
1. Assess Your Current Methods of Communication
To improve your communications, you first need to understand the current standards of
your organization. Take inventory of what communication policies you have in place, what
methods are used, and your overall cultural message about the importance of
communication.
You should also take time to evaluate how communication happens between administration
and staff, staff and staff, and staff and patients. This includes asking staff how they feel
about communication and what improvements they want to see. Pay special attention to
areas where communication is successful and failing. You can then use these instances as a
base on which to model new policies.
How can technology help?
One way of assessing your current communication methods’ effectiveness is to compare
your capabilities to modern tools. For example, do you have measures in place for auditing
communications or can you easily access contact information from a single source?
Understanding how your current processes compare to modern technologies enables you to
identify gaps in your systems. You can also surface those tools that can provide you the
greatest benefit.
2. Streamline Communication Channels
A frequent issue in communications is the complexity of channels. If staff must
communicate the same information in multiple ways to multiple people, information loses
consistency. Likewise, if it is too much of a burden to communicate through official
channels, staff may look for workarounds that reduce the reliability of communications.
For example, if staff have to both call to report and document test results, they may choose
to do only one. Or, they may be interrupted between one step and the next, reducing
reliability. Healthcare settings so mandate some methods and precautions when it comes to
communication that you can’t get around. However, you can make a point to try and
simplify communications as much as possible by removing barriers and redundancies.
How can technology help?
A big issue in healthcare communications is documentation, which often leads to
redundancy. Often, provider communications need to be documented in patient charts and
files, but this creates duplicate efforts and may be overlooked.
Digital communications can be integrated with record systems to eliminate some of this
duplication. For example, notifications can be sent directly from records, ensuring that
communications are recorded.
3. Encourage Mobile Collaboration Between Healthcare Professionals
Healthcare organizations are often busy with urgent patient needs and tight schedules.
Because of this, staff often do not have time to check emails, hunt down information, or
scour through pages and pages of notes. To ensure that staff get the information they need
on time, you should consider mobile communications.
Many providers are already used to pager systems and almost everyone is familiar with
smartphones. You can leverage these tools, along with HIPAA-compliant messaging policies
and applications to enable staff to communicate effectively and efficiently.
How can technology help?
As already mentioned, HIPAA-compliant apps can enable providers to communicate
securely from a device that they are likely already carrying. This enables staff to share
information and seek assistance regardless of where they are. By eliminating the need to
communicate from a stationary desk, providers can see more patients and provide better
care.
4. Make Communication Part of Your Organization’s Culture
At the root of the above practices should be the message that communication is valued and
protected by your organizational values. It’s important to normalize the communication you
want to see in your organization and to make sure to reward it.
Showing staff that communication is a goal and a cultural norm helps build trust and
promotes a sense of teamwork that is not possible otherwise. It also helps you more quickly
identify issues within your organization since staff are more likely to communicate what’s
happening.
How can technology help?
Technologies like HIPAA-compliant messaging and video conferencing systems can help you
unite teams and help familiarize team members despite differing schedules or locations. The
more united your teams feel and the more familiar with other providers and professionals
they are, the more likely they are to communicate.

Link
https://www.onpage.com/effective-communication-between-healthcare-professionals-
best-practices/