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Effective communication and transparency between patients and doctors as well as between health workers present one of the current priorities in the healthcare systems. In the patient-centered approach, communication provides the foundation for decision-making interactions, such as the statement of diagnosis and treatment options. I chose this topic because in theory, effective communication with the patient is an essential part of the healthcare system, but in practice, the step of conveying the information to the patient is often skipped. For example, according to Schnipper et al. (2021), more than twenty percent of emergency department patients do not receive an explanation about their health problems during the diagnosis process. Moreover, nearly five percent of those patients did not receive any instructions about what to do after leaving the emergency departments and what preventative measures are suitable for their conditions. Therefore, this paper will define what effect does nurses (P) giving a written (I) or verbal (C) report on a patient condition (O) have on errors in the health care setting over a month (T).
In the existing body of knowledge, the problem of verbal and non-verbal communication of health care providers is generally discussed from the points of care quality, patients’ level of safety, and satisfaction with the services. However, the majority of experts agree that the issue is sourced from a lack of communication skills and caregivers’ perception of care. According to Schnipper et al. (2021), the level of communication between the patient and caregiver is higher when clinicians adhere to the safety protocols and act intentionally and respectfully towards the patients. On the other hand, excessively open communication with patients could become the potential reason for conflicts between healthcare providers and patients and their families. Therefore, active communication in the healthcare setting should be focused on eliminating any opportunities for patients’ distrust and handling the patients’ emotions.
Next, considering the frequency of medical errors depending on nurses’ choice of verbal or written reports on the patients’ condition, incomplete documentation presents a critical human error that occurs during diagnosis or care planning stages. Miscommunication of verbal reports also presents a significant threat to patients’ safety levels. The article written by Schnipper et al. (2021) proposes the idea that poor communication with patients causes the majority of errors in diagnosis as patients informed about their diagnosis can determine potential errors. In addition, through the implementation of health information technology (HIT), written reports fixed in the electronic health records (EHR) are always available for patients’ review, which enables the direct connection component. Therefore, written reports fixed in EHR have lower chances for misunderstandings and mistakes, and facilitating patients’ access to electronic health records could prevent potential errors in written reports.
In general, verbal reports and orders should be devoted to more urgent cases where time spent on writing or entering the information in the EHR could critically affect a patient’s condition. However, the issues lie within unstructured communication within the organization or medical teams in some cases. Thus, to acquire effective communication knowledge, the healthcare staff should undergo training programs focused on integrating structured communication, such as TeamSTEPPS and simulation-based closed-loop communication. In addition, according to the study conducted by Kwame and Petrucka (2020), excessive workloads and shortages of nurses, and lack of involvement also contribute to the widespread use of verbal reports on patients’ conditions. Therefore, while verbal reports were initially devoted to urgent cases, due to excessive workloads in healthcare systems and unstructured communication flow, a high number of reports and medication orders are transferred in verbal form.
The latest research on the importance of verbal and non-verbal communication with patients and its influence on human errors was conducted by Ahmed (2020) and Kwame and Petrucka (2020). Ahmed’s study of differences between verbal and non-verbal communication of health care providers focused on maternity care in the governmental healthcare system in Erbil, Iraq, while research conducted by Kwame and Petrucka centered on sub-Saharan Africa. In his research, Ahmed defined that nearly half of all women who gave birth in the span of three months were unsatisfied with midwives and physicians’ work. The study determined that there is a direct correlation between the patients’ satisfaction level with the service and the quality of communication of health care provides.
Therefore, increasing the communication skill of health care providers will significantly increase the overall patients’ level of satisfaction with healthcare services. On the other hand, the article by Kwame and Petrucka (2020) explains why communication skills are required for the nursing profession. The authors draw evidence that poor communication affects the quality of care, patients’ safety, and nursing practices (2020). The research defined that because of several factors such as power dynamics, communication styles, and language barriers, the communication and interaction patterns between the care providers and patients could be negatively affected.
In conclusion, giving a verbal report on a patient’s condition instead of a written report in the health care setting over a month could potentially result in half of the patients being unsatisfied with provided services. Factors that influence the decision to use verbal reports include excessive workloads, shortages of nurses, and lack of involvement. Possible implementation should consist of introducing health information technology (HIT) and electronic health records (EHR) and training healthcare providers’ communication skills. The effectiveness of implementation could be evaluated by monitoring patients’ level of satisfaction with the services.
References
Ahmed, H.M. (2020). Role of verbal and non-verbal communication of health care providers in general satisfaction with birth care: a cross-sectional study in government health settings of Erbil City, Iraq. Reproductive Health, 17, 1-9. Web.
Schnipper, J., Fitall, E., Hall, K. K., & Gale, B. (2021). Approach to improving patient safety: Communication. Patient Safety Network. Web.
Kwame, A. & Petrucka, P. (2020). Communication in nurse- patient interaction in healthcare settings in Sub-Saharan Africa: A scoping review. International Journal of Africa Nursing Sciences, 12, 1-22. Web.
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