NUR435 Week 8 Discussion: Professional Communication
Step 1 Choose a communication error you have experienced or witnessed.
Think about a situation in which there was less than optimal communication between staff in two or more disciplines (changing names when appropriate).
Step 2 Post your response to the discussion board.
Respond to the following questions as related to the communication error:
- What parties were involved in the discussion? Give a brief description of the role they played.
- What communication technique or techniques were used to communicate with all the people involved?
- How could the lapse in communication have been prevented? (Include communication techniques, interdisciplinary roles, negotiation, and other factors.)
- What punishment was involved, and how could that communication have been more collaborative among the different professionals?
- What steps has your workplace taken to improve communication between different professions to prevent future errors?
Sample Answer
Nur435 Week 8 Discussion
Communication errors, especially in healthcare, are common between parties either from the same or different disciplines (Granheim, Shaw & Mansah, 2018). In my area of practice as a GI nurse, I once witnessed a communication error where the senior physician bulged in ward with new verbal guidelines on administering medications to a hospitalized patient following digestive system problems. The physician spoke to the involved nurse loudly and quickly in that he was rushing through his words, thus influencing how his significant message was perceived. This communication wasn’t optimal, meaning it wasn’t appropriately conveyed, and the nurse did not understand it well, and after that, medication errors occurred.
Questions
Question 1
The parties involved in the discussion are the senior physician and the nurse practitioner on duty. The patient failed to improve after the initial treatment, and after conducting further tests, the physician decided to change medications administered to the patient. The role played by the physician was prescribing medication, and the nurse was giving medicines to the patient.
Question 2
The communication techniques involved verbal and nonverbal techniques. These communication techniques were used to exchange information. Verbal communication utilized the spoken information face-to-face while the appearance of the physician represented the nonverbal technique.
Question 3
The lapse in communication could have been prevented if the physician could have spoken slowly and deliberately. The message could have been delivered in a manner that could lead to a deeper understanding. In addition, the physician could actively coordinate the work towards the shared treatment goals. The nurse could have asked questions to secure a great deal of the information being delivered. The role reversal technique could have also been applied where the nurse could put herself in the position of the physician to understand the constraints and interests of the other party.
Question 4
Both the physician and the nurse were suspended for a month after harming the patient. The communication could be more collaborative among different professionals if it were structured. This could have ensured that the information was accurately transferred, thus avoiding communication errors. They could also ensure that the information was understood by following the STICC (situation, task, intent, concern, calibrate) protocol.
Question 5
To improve communication between different professions, my workplace has prioritized face-to-face communication as far as technology is concerned. In-person meetings are necessary when establishing effective communication between healthcare professionals (Rubinger et al. 2020). Finally, my workplace has streamlined the communication channels by eliminating the unnecessary communication steps, which often confuse.
References
- Granheim, B. M., Shaw, J. M., & Mansah, M. (2018). Interprofessional learning and simulation in undergraduate nursing programs to address interprofessional communication and collaboration: An integrative review of the literature. Nurse education today, 62, 118-127. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2017.12.021
- Rubinger, L., Gazendam, A., Ekhtiari, S., Nucci, N., Payne, A., Johal, H. … & Bhandari, M. (2020). Maximizing virtual meetings and conferences: a review of best practices. International orthopedics, 44, 1461-1466. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00264-020-04615-9
