Respond to the two-discussion post
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Share additional interview and communication techniques that could be effective with your colleague’s selected patient.
Suggest additional health-related risks that might be considered.
Validate an idea with your own experience and additional research
Discussion #1
Brief Summary of the Interview
This interview involved an 85-year-old white female living a lonely life, with declining health. The woman had come to the health facility to have her health that was going down checked. The interview revealed that the woman had never been to any marriage and gave birth to one child in her early 40s in the form of a cesarean section. However, the child passed on three months later and she resolved not to conceive again due to the conditions that she developed henceforth. When asked about her previous conditions, she stated that she has suffered from chronic conditions before and still looked depressed at the time of the interview. When asked about her financial status, the interview revealed that her income was 90% above the federal poverty level. She is a retired librarian who served in state libraries throughout her years of service. From the interview, it was revealed that she had no history of blood transfusion, and had never suffered from tuberculosis. However, it was established that she is highly allergic to the penicillin medication.
Communication Techniques to be Used
I would offer a genuine smile to my client as the first technique. According to Valt and Stürmer (2018), a genuine smile is an indicator of concern and openness. Through my smile, I will be able to make the patient open up and speak about their conditions without fear. Moreover, my client will provide the most important information, critical to her condition. I will also apply the technique of open-ended questions to allow the patient to express herself freely without limitations. Semyonov-Tal and Lewin-Epstein (2021) stated that open-ended questions create a favorable environment for one to speak their mind about a condition. Finally, I will employ active listening with my client to understand clearly what she is speaking about and her intentions. Isabayeva (2022) argued that active listening is an indicator that a person communicating is empathetic. It will enhance a deeper understanding of my client’s feelings.
Discussion #2
It is vital to obtain a full and thorough medical history including the patients’ concerns, what they expect from the visit, their allergies, medical history for them and their families, and more. For my patient, this is very important as they have no family, and their health is declining. One study found that “eliciting a full patient history through open-ended questioning and active listening will ultimately save time while offering critical clues to the diagnosis” (Muhrer, 2014). Also having a full and complete history and physical will aid in the treatment of the patient in the future. For this post, I was given the 85-year-old female with no family and who lives alone. Also, with her increasing age, her health is declining.
I believe the best place to start any interaction is through introductions. In fact “giving your patient a chance to express concerns to an interested person can be therapeutic and can build trust” (Obtaining an Older Patient’s Medical History, n.d.). Therefore, it is important to build a solid rapport with the patient as her care provider. I would look for a comfortable and private area if possible to talk with her. I would try to find somewhere with a comfortable seat for her that is not too low to the ground or she might struggle to sit and stand. At this point, the provider needs to build trust with the patient so they will be more open to discussing their issues and concerns. The questions need to be clear and concise. It is important to not rush the patient as this comes off as uncaring. I would take into account that the patient may have some hearing loss that she may not acknowledge. Due to this if I share or provide any information on community resources or treatments they will also be presented in writing so they are easy to understand. I know from personal experience that many will not admit to their hearing loss and will just nod their head and miss all the information presented.
For this patient, I feel she needs not only a full history and physical but also a safety assessment. Declining health can mean many different things and it is possible that it is affecting her mobility she may need to improve her surroundings to aid her with ADLs or simply make her home safer against falls and so on. The five questions I would want to include would be the following: What brought you in today? , How do you feel you are doing at home?, what is your medical history, family history, and current medications as well as over-the-counter medications?, Do you have any spiritual needs you wish us to observe?, What would you like to see happen from this visit? I chose these five because I feel they will give me a solid picture of medical issues and concerns. They also tell me what prompted her visit. They address possible safety issues. The question about the spiritual practice will tell me if I need to observe any special practices out of respect for the patient. The last question is my favorite as it will let me know what she wishes to achieve, and what is most important for her?. That will effectively make her part of her own treatment and care. Patients need to be part of their care, and this takes time. It takes time to listen and understand what they are telling you through verbal and non-verbal cues. “Ultimately, improving patient-physician communication requires time – time to listen to patients in the office or at the bedside, time to teach and train professionals at all levels in the basics of patient-centered, empathetic communication skills, and time to study the impact of improved communication of quality improvement” (Lappen, n.d.).
