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The Professional Helping Relationship in Practice Improving Patient Satisfaction and Outcomes through Effective Communication

What is Patient Satisfaction?

Patient-Related Factors:

• Age

• Ethnicity

• Gender

• Socioeconomic status

• Health status

• Physician-Related Factors:

• Expectations

• Communication

• Control

• Decision-making

• Time spent

• Technical skills

• Appearance

• System-Related Factors:

• The clinical team

• Referrals

• Continuity of care

• Thiedke, C. (2007). What do we really know about patient satisfaction? Family

Practice Management 14(1), 33-36.

So, what’s the connection between patient satisfaction and professional helping relationships in health care?

• “Studies support that patients who get better are (not surprisingly) satisfied with their care.”

• “Patients who reported being treated with dignity and worth and who were involved in decisions were more satisfied and more adherent to their doctors’ recommendations.”

• “Extensive research has shown that no matter how knowledgeable a clinician might be, if he or she is not able to open good communication with the patient, he or she may be of no help.”

• “Patients’ perceptions of the quality of the healthcare

they received are highly dependent on the quality of their interactions with their healthcare clinician and team.”

• “Studies show that the clinician’s ability to explain, listen and empathize can have a profound effect on biological and functional health outcomes as well as patient satisfaction and experience of care. Further, communication among healthcare team members influences the quality of working relationships, job satisfaction, and has a profound impact on patient safety.”

• Institute for Healthcare Communication. (2011). Impact of Communication in Healthcare. Retrieved from http://healthcarecomm.org/about-us/impact-of-communication-in-healthcare/.

The HCAHPS Survey

• Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems, a survey created by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services)

• Communication with nurses

• Communication with doctors

• Responsiveness of hospital staff

• Pain management

• Communication about medicines

• Discharge information

• Care transition

• www.hcahpsonline.org

The Professional Relationship

• You as the professional are responsible for structuring the relationship

• The relationship is collaborative in nature

• It is the professional’s responsibility to stay focused

• This is a purposeful relationship

• Your role is to respond to the patient’s needs

• You are responsible for explaining the rules of the professional relationship

Beginnings and Closings

• Introduction

• Purpose

• Time Frame

• Roles

• Summary

• Next Meeting

• Things that need to be accomplished before next meeting

Core Interpersonal Qualities

• Empathy

• Warmth

• Genuineness

• Respect

Core Interpersonal Skills

• Observing

• Attending

• Listening

Useful Communication Skills

• Reflection

• Summarizing

• Clarifying

• Silence

• Questioning

• Identifying Strengths

Things to avoid:

• Asking Irrelevant or offensive questions

• Asking leading questions

• Offering personal information, advice and opinions

• False Reassurance

• Asking “why” questions

• Distracting behavior

References:

• Adler, R., Rosenfeld, L., Proctor, R. (2013). Interplay: The Process of Interpersonal Communication. (12th ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

• Chang, V., Scott, S., Decker, C. (2013). Developing Helping Skills: A Step by Step Approach to Competency. (2nd ed.). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning.

Final Questions? Contact Information:

Kathie Miller, MSW, LCSW: kmiller@semo.edu

573-651-2328

Tiffany Parker, MSW, LCSW: tparker@semo.edu

573-651-5198