Communication for Health Professionals

This article discusses the importance of communication for health professionals and provides strategies to facilitate effective communication. It also explores the ethical considerations and challenges of interprofessional collaboration. The content includes information on developing rapport with clients, communication strategies, barriers to effective communication, and ethical considerations in healthcare.

Running head: COMMUNICATION FOR HEALTH PROFESSIONALS 1
Communication for health professionals
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Introduction
Often, human beings go through certain experiences that affect their feelings and life.
They therefore assistance or guidance from particular experts. These experts are known as
councillors and their function or role is to ensure that they explore diverse aspects of the life and
feelings of those affected by speaking freely and openly (Magyar-Moe, Owens, & Scheel, 2015).
The counsellor is supposed to provide a conducive environment and time for the affected
individual to express or share their feelings such as anger, guilt or fear (West, 2012). In a
particular case study, I interacted with Kirra had been referred to me by her GP who had
expressed concern regarding Kirra’s weight and mood. Although I was yet to meet Kirra, I was
have provided with a written referral by the GP. Counsellors play an important role in averting
serious consequences such as suicide or death, it is therefore advisable to incorporate them at
different healthcare organizations so that they can offer counselling services to patients,
healthcare workers and their families. Within the framework of this essay, there will be an
analysis of different issues surrounding counselling such as ethics and communication.
Discussion
Developing rapport with the client
Studies note that the manner in which a counsellor relates to his/her patients determines
the success or failure of the whole counselling session. As a counsellor therefore, I am supposed
to create a good rapport since it is associated with positive outcome (Feo, Rasmussen, Wiechula,
Conroy, & Kitson, 2017). There are different ways that I can develop a rapport with the patient
Kirra. Studies propose seven basic ways that a counsellor can use to develop a rapport with their

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clients and I would adhere to the same. First of all, I will be myself. Here, I will try as much as
possible to be who I am. I would be very genuine and not mimic anyone and how they do things.
I also won’t try anything new.
Secondly, I would be very friendly with Kirra my patient. Studies associate chilly
reactions from other chilly people. In this case, I will ensure that I approach the patient full of
intent, warm and in a very friendly manner (Price, 2017). I would smile at Kirra and give her a
handshake. Furthermore, I would maintain eye contact and engage him on different issues. I
would do this in a very authentic manner since it can backfire if the patient if the patient notes
that a counsellor is forcing friendliness.
I would also show real interest. I would ensure that I exhibit true or real interest in the
case of the patient. I would therefore ensure that I listen carefully to the patients concerns so that
he feels valued (Goldstein & Glueck, 2016). I can also develop rapport with Kirra by
establishing a common ground. Since studies argue that people like or feel attracted to people
with similar traits, I would ensure that I quickly note the interests of Kirra and focus on that line.
Giving genuine compliments is another way that I would utilise to develop rapport with the
patient. According to Glueck, sycophancy is known to break different relationships (Glueck,
2013). I would therefore ensure that provide genuine and endearing compliments. If for example
the patient has a good mobile phone, I would complement it. Finally, I would calibrate the
rapport and read the culture of Kirra. This means I should adjust to suit the beliefs and values of
Kirra. Creating a good rapport encourages the patient to be open and disclose more feelings or
information and this offers a better chance in designing the desired interventions to assist the
patient.

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Communication strategies to facilitate effective communication and how they are
implemented.
In order to facilitate effective communication with Kirra, I will employ different
strategies. First, I would employ active listening skills. I will implement this by listening
carefully to whatever the patient is talking (Butchibabu, Sparano-Huiban, Sonenberg, & Shah,
2016). Furthermore, I won’t interrupt the patient while speaking and I would only intervene or
talk when called upon. I would also employ non-verbal strategies such as facial expression,
gestures and body language. I would implement facial expressions to any feelings such as
happiness when am contented (O'Toole, 2016). I would implement gestures when demonstrating
something to my patient. Finally, I would implement body language to signal the patient that am
keenly following whatever they are describing.
Barriers to effective communication and how I can overcome
There are different barriers that might hinder effective communication between me and
my patient Kirra. The barriers can be grouped into physical, attitudinal, physiological, and
psychological and language barriers (Thomson, Outram, Gilligan, & Levett-Jones, 2015).
Language barrier could occur if Kirra could speak a different language that I can’t understand.
To overcome this barrier, I might be forced to call in a translator who understands the language
that Kirra might be speaking (O'Toole, 2016). Psychological barriers involve the effect of
psychology on communication. A good example is if Kirra is stressed up or worried,
communication might be very difficult. In order to overcome such psychological barriers, I will
ensure that I create a conducive environment so that Kirra is comfortable. Physical barriers like
noise can also affect our communication and I might be forced to move in a region free from

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noise. Finally socio-cultural factors can also affect communication. This includes issues to do
with religion or beliefs. Some cultures do not allow communication between opposite genders
(O'Toole, 2016). In case of such a barrier, I will have to seek further assistance or involve
another counsellor from the same belief or religion. Communication optimises well-being and
healthcare outcomes despite numerous challenges, all health experts should therefore strive to
overcome barriers to effective communication.
Ethical considerations present in this case
In this case, the ethical consideration present is the principle of Beneficence. According
to this ethical principle, a healthcare provider is supposed to be of maximum benefit to the
patient (Johnson, 2016). This implies that whatever the nurse does should be aimed at benefiting
the patient. Furthermore, the principle advise healthcare experts to take necessary positive steps
so as to alleviate harm to the harm. In this particular case study, The General Practitioner (GP) is
concerned about the mood and the weight of Kirra (O'Toole, 2016). The GP has gone ahead and
taken an important step to refer the patient to me as a counsellor so that appropriate interventions
are conducted or carried out.
Ethics and challenges of interprofessional collaboration
Interprofessional communication has been widely accepted that it improves patient
outcomes through effective communication among the different teams in healthcare and
improved accessibility to health services (Foronda, MacWilliams, & McArthur, 2016). In the
case of Kirra, there are different health professionals that I can communicate with regarding his
healthcare. Three of them include a nutritionist who will guide my patient on the significance of

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diet on weight. I would also communicate with a behavioural therapist who would assess the
moods of the patient. Finally, I would communicate with a social worker who would act as the
link between the patient/families and healthcare members.
Interprofessional communication is not short of challenges as studies note that different
ethical issues arise during such communications (Ambrose-Miller & Ashcroft, 2016). One
important ethical consideration is consent. Consent is like a permission granted to proceed with a
certain intervention (O'Toole, 2016). During interprofessional communication, it might be very
difficult to ascertain who should provide consent to the intervention by other healthcare experts.
Issues of respect and confidentiality are also of concern since it involves disclosing patients’
details without their consent (Delany, Richards, Stewart, & Kosta, 2017). Different challenges
arise from interprofessional communication such as hostility where one member might be so
hostile against another. Other challenges include differences in jargons /professional language,
personality differences and hierarchy.
Conclusion
Counsellors are people trained and equipped with skills that can assist people
experiencing feelings of anger, denial and guilt. They can used to prevent complications of such
feelings like suicide. Counsellors however ought to be conversant with good communication
skills since they have to directly interact with patients and interprofessional members.
Furthermore, they also need to understand ethical principles surrounding counselling and
interprofessional collaboration to avoid any legal suits.

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