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Health Care and Communication Kathy Owen HCS/320 July 15, 2013 Patricia Bird

What is communication? “Communication can be defined as the process of sending and receiving messages.” (Cheesebro, O'Conner, & Rios, 2010). Communication in heath care is probably the most important issue that needs to be addressed. Not only does the patient need to communicate all of their issues to the physician, but they also need to make sure that they are addressing them to an extent with the scheduling staff and nurses as well. Also the physicians, nurses, and front end staff need to make sure that they are communicating with the patient so that they understand what it is that they are being told, what they are being scheduled for, tests and such, and even what services they are being or have been billed for. There are a few different methods for communicating. Face to face, phone calls, emails and some even still send an actual letter in the mail. When communicating in any of these methods the way that you state something can come across in different ways depending on tone of voice or even just the proper wording. Hugman (2010). “To be an effective communicator with patients and families, there are several things to keep in mind to help you be more effective and to keep yourself out of trouble.” Good news is always easy to give, but you have to be very careful not to promise something that you cannot guarantee, bad news is both difficult to give and to receive for both the patient and the physician, errors in information can be life changing and are difficult to admit, depending on the circumstances and when saying no to a patient making sure that you explain clearly why you are saying no is very important. Hugman (2010). Communication between the physician and family members can also be difficult as they may not always understand what

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