Communication Factors in Health and Social Care

Running head: HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE
Health and Social Care
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HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE
Task 2
Effective communication is an integral element of health and social care since it helps in
establishing and developing suitable relationships with the service users and other care
professionals. They are also crucial for requesting and providing information related to the
services provided. The present essay discusses the factors influencing the communication
process in health and social care. The discussion reflects on how the communication process is
impacted by cultures and values. Further, the relation of charters, legislation and codes of
practice with communication and care in the domain is highlighted. In addition, the discussion
addresses how effective organizational policies and systems are in promoting good practice, and
how further improvements can be made to the scenario setting.
The role of communication in enabling optimal quality health and social care service
delivery has been acknowledged repeatedly. It has been noted that strong communication
between service users and service providers, as well as between service providers paves the way
for desirable process outcomes. The comprehensive needs of the service users can only be met if
information is passed onto them in an accurate manner. The expediency of communication skills
are far reaching, and encompass different aspects of personal characteristics (Williams et al.
2015). According to Moss (2017) communication in health and social care is deeply influenced
by the values and cultures of individuals who are a part of the respective care setting. The culture
and values that have been inherited in the care organization contribute largely to the
communication process demonstrated within the setting. The culture and values determine the
extent to which the viewpoints and opinions of other individuals are respected, and hence the
extent to which communication is effective. For example, if professionals have a particular
mindset regarding differences based on creed, caste, gender and religion, discrimination is bound

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HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE
to be felt at different levels of communication. Firstly, care professionals are to be subjected to
discrimination and intolerance based on certain inherited characteristics.
Further, service users are to be subjected to discrimination due to their nature and
background. Discrimination and prejudice hampers communication as two-way exchange of
information is not upheld. Samovar et al. (2015) in this regard stated that value and culture of
individuals drive the keenness and dedication to demonstrate respect and reverence to others. In
case an individual is not supportive of other individuals, an environment promoting
communication across the setting is not enabled. Genuine communication is not upheld within
the setting if there are traces of disrespect, hesitation and hatred evident in the setting (Guasvik et
al. 2015).
A wide range of legislations and codes of practice have a marked impact on the
communication process in health and social care setting. The aim of the legislations, charters and
codes of practice have been to bring improvement in the communication processes. This is to be
done by augmenting the confidence level of individuals to focus on strong communication. The
charters, legislations and code of practices that are adhered to at the present setting are
highlighted in here. The present health and social care unit considers strict implementation of
policies and procedures within the setting. Some of the notable policies in this regard are the
Whistle Blowing Policy, the Workplace Bullying Policy and the Racial Discrimination Policy.
The Whistle Blowing Policy is followed for complying with the Public Interest
Disclosure Act 1998 that ensures that any wrongdoing is reported appropriately. All members of
the setting are given clear instruction on how to bring into focus any undesirable and
inappropriate deeds that might be of harm to service users and other staffs. The policy on