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SEMINAR 3 MO-260 ~ Medical Office Applications TOPICS: What is Communication? Goals of Communication Medical Assisting and Communication Telephone Techniques Barriers to Communication Listening Is Your Office Patient-friendly? It’s all about communication! What happens when a patient calls the office? What happens when a patient comes in the front door? How do patients locate your office? How do patients schedule appointments? Why is Effective Communication Important? Why is effective communication important for a Medical Assisting professional? Setting the tone. Obtaining patient information. Recording patient information. Preparing the patient. Assisting the physician. As such, the Medical Assistant must be able to: Listen effectively…hear, think about, and respond. Observe non-verbal clues and body language. Ask appropriate questions. Summarize information. Goals of Communication Goals of Communication Versus Goals of the Medical Office Medical Assisting and Communication As Medical Assisting professionals, we must: ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ Communicate effectively, Recognize obstacles, Understand human behavior, Set the stage, Encourage active participation from patients. Medical Assisting and Communication continued… Keep in mind the importance of all of the following: ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ Professional presence, Professional interactions, Setting the tone, Professional communications, Patient comfort and well-being, Patient satisfaction. Communications with Patients… Communications with patients may include : the use of various telephone techniques, written correspondence, responding to telephone messages, explaining procedures to patients, assisting with billing issues, maintaining a patient-centered approach. Telephone Techniques Telephone Techniques ◦ Pay attention to… Choice of words, Tone of voice, Being a good listener. Also, have a positive attitude, Be sincere. Telephone Etiquette Telephone Messages Taking Telephone Messages ◦ Properly recording telephone messages. ◦ What to include in telephone messages. ◦ Delivering telephone messages. Barriers to Communication Medical Assistants must strive to be tolerant and understanding of personal and cultural differences. Be aware of potential language barriers, And physical impairments. Avoid Stereotyping: Negative statement about specific traits of a group applied to an entire population. Avoid Generalizations: Statement about common trends within a group. Perception: capacity for comprehension; level of awareness of the elements of the environment. Refrain from passing judgments and prejudice. Quiz 1: Barriers to Communication Determine which of the following barriers to communication applies in each example given: Language Barrier, Perception, Physical Impairment, Prejudice, or Stereotyping A. Cylinda has lived in the south all her life, and when Bruce came to work at the office, his brusque attitude made her feel defensive. She was so offended by his manner of speaking that she began to avoid him in the hallways and during breaks. He constantly spoke of how much more he’d been paid in New York and stressed the efficiency of the clinic where he formerly worked. Cylinda considers him a typical Northerner, and her dislike of him is based largely on the fact that he is different from her and most of the people she knows. B. Aretha dreads the days that Rahima Bathkar comes to the office. She is a pleasant patient, but Aretha cannot understand her well and feels as if she is not providing Rahima with the care that she deserves. She is always worried that she is missing some information that the physician needs to know to properly diagnose and treat the patient. Aretha takes extra time with her, but because there is no one to interpret for Rahima when she cannot find the right word in her broken English, Aretha is concerned. Quiz 1: Barriers to Communication Determine which of the following barriers to communication applies in each example given: Language Barrier, Perception, Physical Impairment, Prejudice, or Stereotyping C. Allan and Rebecca Poe are an elderly couple; they visit the clinic twice a month for Rebecca’s diabetes. Rebecca is blind in one eye and cannot read easily. Allan has vision problems as well, so the staff must read any documents that they are required to sign to them to assure that they understand the information contained in the documents. D. Tommy Lightman approached the office manager because he was concerned about the manner in which Sarah spoke to him in the office. He expressed that Sarah was quite short with him last Tuesday and seemed very distracted as she talked with him in the examination room before the physician came in to treat him. He also said that the physician seemed to spend less time with him that day than usual. Tommy was concerned that he was not wanted in the clinic and wanted to have his records sent to another physician. The office manager checked the appointment book and realized that Tommy was in the office last Tuesday at 11 o’clock, which was the exact time that another patient was being transported to the hospital because of heart failure. Quiz 1: Barriers to Communication Determine which of the following barriers to communication applies in each example given: Language Barrier, Perception, Physical Impairment, Prejudice, or Stereotyping E. Teresa has a difficult time dealing with Orlando Gutierrez. He comes for appointments twice a month and is trying desperately to lose weight. He currently weighs 435 lbs. he is a pleasant person, but Teresa has been raised to believe that those who are overweight are lazy individuals. She tries to avoid caring for him when he visits the clinc. Barriers to Communication Anxiety or stress causes the human body to react in many different ways. People may use defense mechanisms when they feel pressured or attacked in some way. Defense Mechanisms ~ are often subconscious reactions designed for emotional protection; they help an individual to deal with whatever difficult event has triggered such a response. Due to defense mechanisms, some patients may display: ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ Apathy Avoidance (Physical Avoidance) Compensation Denial Displacement Dissociation Identification Introjection Projection Rationalization Regression Repression Sarcasm Verbal Aggression Quiz 2: Barriers to Communication Determine which of the following defense mechanisms applies in each example given: Apathy, Avoidance (Physical Avoidance), Compensation, Denial, Displacement, Projection, Rationalization, Regression, Repression, Sarcasm, Verbal Aggression A. “Everyone forgets to clock in from lunch once in a while. Why am I being singled out and written up?” B. “I refuse to believe that I’m HIV positive. I’ve only had sex with two people in the past 5 years.” C. I would do a better job at work, but I can’t do everything in 1 day like I’m expected to.” D. “I know that the office manager is angry with me because I’ve been late, and I should talk to her, but I just can’t deal with that stress right now.” Quiz 2: Barriers to Communication Determine which of the following defense mechanisms applies in each example given: Apathy, Avoidance (Physical Avoidance), Compensation, Denial, Displacement, Projection, Rationalization, Regression, Repression, Sarcasm, Verbal Aggression E. “Why are you attacking me about not filling out the narcotics log? You certainly aren’t the perfect medical assistant!” F. “I know muy blood sugar is high, and I have tried to avoid sugar, but at least I’m doing my exercises twice a week.” G. “Dr. Roberts only yells at me because he’s stressed about his patient load.” H. “It doesn’t matter what I do to please my family. They hate me anyway, and there’s nothing I can do about it. Quiz 2: Barriers to Communication Determine which of the following defense mechanisms applies in each example given: Apathy, Avoidance (Physical Avoidance), Compensation, Denial, Displacement, Projection, Rationalization, Regression, Repression, Sarcasm, Verbal Aggression I. “I have enough on my mind and don’t need my co-workers complaining that I’m not doing my share of the work!” J. “I can’t bear to go to Memorial Park for our office picnic because that’s where my ex-hysband told me he wanted a divorce.” K. “Sure she looks good, if you like people from the 60’s!” Listening “Seek first to understand… Then to be understood.” (Covey, 1997) The Power of Listening The philosopher Epictetus stressed the power of listening in this quote: ◦ “Nature gave us one tongue and two ears so we could hear twice as much as we speak.”