Effective Communication in Health and Social Care

This report delves into the significance of effective communication in health and social care, highlighting key theories, models, and skills employed by care workers and providers. From SOLER (Egan) theory to Argyle's communication model, the importance of staff training, active listening, and appropriate body language is emphasized. The use of technology, such as text phones and voice-activated systems, is also discussed as a means to enhance patient communication. Additionally, the impact of value and culture factors on interaction processes is analyzed. Relevant laws and regulations, including the Equality Act 2010 and Access to Health Care Records 1990, are mentioned as influencing communication in healthcare.

Communicating in health and
social care

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
LO 1 ................................................................................................................................................1
1.1 Apply theories of communication ........................................................................................1
1.2 Use communication skills ....................................................................................................1
1.3 Methods of dealing with inappropriate interpersonal communication ................................1
1.4 Use of strategies to support users .........................................................................................1
LO 2.................................................................................................................................................1
2.1 Communication process influence values and cultural factors ............................................1
2.2 Impact of legislation and codes of practices on communication process.............................2
2.3 Effectiveness of organizational systems and policies ..........................................................3
2.4 Suggestion way of improving communication process .......................................................3
LO 3.................................................................................................................................................4
3.1 Use of information and communication technology(ICT) software package ......................4
3.2 Benefits of utilizing ICT in health and social care ...............................................................4
3.3 Legal consideration in use of ICT ........................................................................................4
CONCLUSION ...............................................................................................................................4
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................5

INTRODUCTION
Communication process is very essential part and activity of the organization. For
effective interaction procedures, staff and managers of company make efforts on it. In this
context, impressive communication is important in health and social care for staff and providers
for giving welfare and well-being care to people(Betancourt and et.al., 2016). This assignment
will apply different theories of communication, utilizes of communication skills in health and
social care. It will review methods of dealing with inappropriate interpersonal communication
between individual in health and social care. Furthermore, report will explain values and culture
factors, different legislation, code of practices and charters influenced on communication process
in health and social care.
TASK 1
1.1 Apply theories of communication
Communication is very essential to connect with staff and patients in health care
organization. So that, health care providers adopt different theories of communication. There are
very types of communication such as formal and informal. In formal communication, there are
two kinds like written and oral. In informal communication, verbal like body language, posture
etc. Such as:
Argyle's theory : It is theory of communication that are adopted by health and social care
organization. It is also known as communication cycle that interpret or decode other are
communicating and constantly follow their behaviour to interact effectively. In the cycle, points
are included such as occur idea, coding message, send message, received, decoded, understand
and sent feedback(Pickles and et.al., 2016).
SOLER (Egan) theory: This theory defines non verbal communication that improving
impressiveness of communication between individual in the health and social care. Egan theory
shows the most impressive body language to utilize to create and for caring of others. Therefore,
this theory must have followed by health and social care providers. SOLER stands for square,
open, lean, eye contact and relax.
1.2 Use communication skills
There are many communication skills that are utilized by health and social care
professional in the workplace. Such as:
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Summarising: The health care providers must have summarising skills in communication
with staff and patients. Summarising means explaining different diagnosis, investigation and
treatment to people. They also give clear instruction on discharge, advice risk factors on health
of patients.
Clarifying: It is necessary to clarifying the things such as treatment, medicines to
patients, because there are many people in organization and they have talked different language.
So that, health care providers must have clarifying skill in communication skill.
Questioning: It is skill includes in communication ability in the health and social care
providers(Communication skill in healthcare, 2018). By effective communication, they are
questioning with patients and their relatives regrading their diseases. Therefore, it is necessary to
providers that must have this skill in the workplace.
Paraphrasing: This skill also included in communication ability. Health care providers
must have paraphrasing skills, because of there are many patients that have different culture,
language in organization. So that, it is needed that paraphrase their things and try to understand
their things.
Active listening: It is also communication skill that must have in health care providers.
With active listening, sharing appropriate information and data with staff and providers.
Therefore, it is necessary to active listening for staff and providers in health and social care
organization(Cameron and et.al., 2014).
1.3 Methods of dealing with inappropriate interpersonal communication
There are many people working in health care organizations and they are coming in
different culture and their way of talking different from each other. So that, it necessary to
happen interpersonal communication between staff. Inappropriate interpersonal communication
includes verbal abuse, aggressiveness, misunderstanding, misbehave etc. For dealing with that,
health care providers adopt different methods in the workplace.
Staff training: Health care providers give training for improving communication skills of
staff. Employees training helps in dealing with inappropriate interpersonal communication
between workers(Dickinson and O'Flynn, 2016). With the help of it, workers are improving their
communication skills. Therefore, they are giving effective training to staff for their development
and improving communication process in the workplace.
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Appropriate body language: It is necessary to effective interpersonal communication in
the workplace. Inappropriate body language is barrier of impressive interaction that are
happening improper interpersonal interaction.
Active listening: It is necessary to effective interaction in the workplace. Inactive
listening is occurred inappropriate interpersonal interaction between staff and health care
providers. Therefore, it is required to that active listening by providers in the organization.
Utilizing technology: For effective communication, staff and provider utilizing different
technology such as email, conferencing etc( Newhouse and et.al., 2015). With the help of it, they
are sharing appropriate information and improving inappropriate interpersonal interaction in the
workplace. This helps in improving communication and interpersonal conflicts between
individual in the organization.
1.4 Use of strategies to support users
Health and social care user utilise the different strategies in terms of technology with
specific needs of communication. Such as text phones, voice activated and other software. With
the help of it, services users easily communicated with each other regarding condition of
patients, treatment etc(Naslund and et.al. 2016). in health and social care organization. Users
adopt text phones for sharing information or data relating to patients, staff, practitioner, doctor
that helps in effective communication.
User of healthcare adopt voice activated system for verbal communication with staff,
doctors, practitioner and other workers. This helps in effective interaction between users of
healthcare services. With the help of it, all the users are giving the best health and social care to
patients in the organization. For adopting appropriate technology, user are taking training for
effective communication. If any technology is not working, so that they are appointed different
people of translator, interpreters, building relationship to support users in health and social care
for needs of communication(Cameron and et.al., 2014).
With the help of translator, they are interpreting the information from different language,
so that it is to understand data regarding to patients. It is simple way and strategy to determine
difficult information or data regarding to patients, staff and other people in the workplace. This
also helps in giving the best health and social care services to people.
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TASK 2
2.1 Communication process influence values and cultural factors
Values and cultures factors affects on communication process in health and social care.
There are many elements included in value and social factors such as:
Culture Factors:
In the world, there are many people are leaving and their culture is different from with
each other. In order to that, different culture of person that are admitted in health and social care
organizations. Therefore, It is difficult to operators of these organizations to communicating with
people for giving health and social care services. It is necessary to effective interaction of health
care providers(Naslund and et.al. 2016) Misinterpretation of culture between patients and health
care provider is other factors attempting to patients dissatisfaction and lower quality of care.
Good communication between patient and providers build relationship that is resulting in
improving satisfaction of people and support to medical advice as well as better health care
outcomes.
Values Factors:
Values refers to behaviour and attitude of people. There are various people and having
beliefs are different in the world. Ethnicity, religious beliefs, education are included in the value
factors that are influenced on communication. Therefore, healthcare providers make sure that
effective communicating with patients by understanding their beliefs for giving the best quality
services to consumers. Values factors are also influenced on effective communication in health
and social care(Betancourt and et.al., 2016). Education considers as value of people that affects
on interaction between healthcare providers and their staff to give the best services to patients.
Ineffective values are impacted on communication process in the health and social organization.
2.2 Impact of legislation and codes of practices on communication process
Legislation:
There are various legislation such as Equality Act 2010, Data protection act 1998, Access
to health Records 1990 etc. that are impacted on communication between healthcare providers
and their staff in the organization.
Equality Act, 2010: This act has replaced anti-discrimination legislation. The laws have
been passed in response to change public perception and development of human rights laws.
There are many key modification in Equality legislation affecting healthcare organization. It
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includes protecting people from discrimination during hiring, giving support to pregnant women
from discrimination(Cameron and et.al., 2014). This act impact on communication process by
unequal treatment for staff in the organization.
Access to healthcare Records, 1990: Under this act, all patients have to right to request
access to all their health care records. Access to health care records includes child's and deceased
person healthcare records. In the child access records, if patients is under age of 16 and trust that
revealing not detrimental to physical or metal. Therefore, they are maintained and accessing
records of health in organization.
Code of practices:
Standards of Proficiency: The standards of proficiency are professional standards for
improving code of practices in health and social care(Betancourt and et.al., 2016).. There are
many practices in training for social workers. Trainers of this council, able to practice of
effective communication, maintain confidence, assure quality of their practice of social workers.
Charters:
The Health charter is created to help social care workers to improve welfare and well-
being of people with learning disabilities thus better quality of life to person. Many of social
workers performing together with people and learning inabilities, families and carers and their
well-being colleagues to better welfare and well-being(Coulter and et.al., 2014).
Care Quality Commission(CQC): It is non division public body of section of health and
social care in UK. This boy provides health and social care to people with safe, impressive and
high quality care. For providing the healthcare, it is necessary to effective communication with
staff and CQC. This type of commission helps in effective communication process in the health
and social care organization.
2.3 Effectiveness of organizational systems and policies
Organizational system:
There are various system included in organization such as policies and process, working
instruction, staff roles and responsibilities, data protection etc. Therefore, healthcare providers
give clear instruction, assigning proper duties to staff, protecting all information for promoting
good practice of communication process in healthcare organization(Cameron and et.al., 2014).
Healthcare providers make sure that all staff are working effectively in relation to providing the
better health care to people. Healthcare providers make sure that assigning appropriate
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responsibilities according to their skills and knowledge, so that workers are helped to give the
healthcare to patients. The activities of organization system helps to improve effectual of
interaction practices in the workplace.
Policies:
There are different policies such as confidentiality, equal chances etc. that implement in
the healthcare organization. Providers implement those policies for giving equal opportunities to
staff, so that workers are effective communicating with superiors and giving the better health
care to patients. With the help of it, improve effectiveness of communication process in the
health care workplace(Coulter and et.al., 2014). Healthcare providers must have confidentiality
for improving procedures interaction with staff to give the social care to the patients. With the
help of it, providers give training of staff for safeguarding and improving effectiveness of
communication practices in the workplace.
2.4 Suggestion way of improving communication process
For improving communication process, providers can do different activities such as staff
development, compliance legislation as well as policies, collaborative working and reflective
practices. They can organize different training programs for development of staff for effective
interaction between staff(Betancourt and et.al., 2016). With the help of it, there is no
interpersonal conflicts between workers. Providers can follow different legislation such as
equality, data protection, human right etc. for improving communication process in the health
and social care.
Providers can do collaborative working with staff for giving the best health and social
care facilities to people. With help of it, they can make efforts to improve interaction procedure
in health and social care. Through it, providers and staff are effectively communicating for
giving well-being and societal care. This helps in improving process of communication in health
and social care. By adopting reflective practices, they can improve communication process for
overcoming interpersonal improper communication between individual in health and social care
workplace. By giving appropriate training and development to staff, company enhance staff
development in the organization(Cameron and et.al., 2014).
TASK 3
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3.1 Use of information and
communication
technology(ICT)
software package
Information and
communication
technology(ICT) software
packages are very essential in
health and social care.
Providers utilization these
packages for many ways such
as plaining and monitoring of
treatment, connecting with
staff, reducing health care
costs, maintain records of staff
etc. in the workplace. There
are many software packages
such as presentation,
spreadsheet, word processing,
email, internet etc.
With the help of presentation
software, organization give
training of staff for giving the
effective health and social care
to patients. Through it, they
want to know about the
different health care facilities
to people. Spreadsheet
software utilize for
maintaining staff records and
history of patients in health
For care organization:
It is beneficial to speedily
access information or data
between staff and providers
regrading to patients and other
workers.
With the help of
communication technology,
employees and providers
easily communicated as well
as transferring information
about people.
Through it, company easily
maintain records of staff as
well as patients. It is beneficial
to remote and monitoring
devices that are used in health
care facilities to people.
Through it, company know
about different medicines by e-
medicine that require to
patients.
For care workers:
It is advantageous to care
workers regrading to know
about detail of patients.
With the help of it, providers
give training of care worker
for providing health care
services to patients.
It is good for easily
This act deals with notification
by data controllers to
information commissioner,
compliance with different rules
of data protection and
perceptive rights of data
subjects.
Therefore, organization make
sure that proper recording
personal information of
individual. For example
unauthorised access, accuracy
of data input etc. issues are
impacted on communication in
health and social care.
Health and safety, 1974 : This
act defined key structure and
government for approval
regulation of health, security
and welfare with in UK.
Therefore, healthcare
organization make suer that
follow this act for staff and
patients security and well-
being in the workplace. The
objective of this act is securing
health, safety and welfare of
people at work. For instance
prevention of repetitive strain
injuries etc. that impacts on
communication in health care.
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care organizations. With the
help of it, company reducing
care costs and connecting with
staff.
Through utilizing different
technology, providers are
regularly monitoring devices
that are used in treatment of
patients. Therefore, company
make sure that monitoring and
implementing all technologies
in the organization.
3.2 Benefits of utilizing ICT in
health and social care
Information and
communication technology is
beneficial in many ways in the
health and social care
workplace. There are many
benefits of using these
technologies in the workplace.
Such as:
communicating with providers
through emails, internet etc.
Through it, care workers are
giving information to
providers in emergency cases
and situations.
3.3 Legal consideration in use
of ICT
There are many legal
consideration such as data
protection, health and safety,
access health records etc.
Data Protection Act, 1998:
This act requires public bodies
and their data controllers to
comply with the range of data
protection values. This act
apples to personal data not
health records.
Access of Health Records Act,
1990: Health records is any
record This act includes all
patients have right to asking to
all their health care records.
There are two access of
records such as child and
deceased persons. In access of
child records, patient is under
age of 16 and trust agrees that
disclosure not be detrimental
to physical and mental.
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CONCLUSION
This report has summarized that SOLER (Egan) theory, Argyle's theory of
communication in health and social care. It can be concluded that summarising, questioning,
paraphrasing, clarifying are communication skills adopted care workers and care providers. It
can be discussed that staff training, active listening, appropriate body language for dealing with
inappropriate interpersonal communication between individual. It can be analysed that adopting
different technologies such as text phone, voice activated for helps in health care users for
effective communication. It can be explained that value and culture factors affected on
interaction process. It can be concluded that Equality Act, 2010, Access to healthcare Records,
1990, different code of practice and charter affected on communication process in health care.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Betancourt, J.R., and et.al., 2016. Defining cultural competence: a practical framework for
addressing racial/ethnic disparities in health and health care. Public health reports.
Cameron, A. and et.al., 2014. Factors that promote and hinder joint and integrated working
between health and social care services: a review of research literature. Health & social
care in the community. 22(3). pp.225-233.
Coulter, A. and et.al., 2014. Collecting data on patient experience is not enough: they must be
used to improve care. Bmj. 348. p.g2225.
Dickinson, H. and O'Flynn, J., 2016. Evaluating Outcomes in Health and Social Care 2e. Policy
Press.
Naslund, J.A. and et.al. 2016. The future of mental health care: peer-to-peer support and social
media. Epidemiology and psychiatric sciences. 25(2). pp.113-122.
Newhouse, N. and et.al., 2015. Patient use of email for health care communication purposes
across 14 European countries: an analysis of users according to demographic and health-
related factors. Journal of medical Internet research. 17(3).
Pickles, A.and et.al., 2016. Parent-mediated social communication therapy for young children
with autism (PACT): long-term follow-up of a randomised controlled trial. The
Lancet 388(10059). pp.2501-2509.
Online
Communication skill in healthcare, 2018. [ONLINE]. Available through. :
<https://www.oscehome.com/Communication-Skills.html>.
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