I was recently speaking with a woman who has Stage III ovarian cancer. We were talking about the language that gets used around cancer and other terminal diseases. She retold one conversation that stood out to her, because of her surgeon’s careful use of language: “He said, ‘Y’know it’s gonna get us in the end.’ […]
Patient communication: Aristotle helps you break it down
You want to do better with your spoken communication. Who better to turn to than the Ancient Greeks? They knew a thing or two about high-stakes verbal communication. In this episode, you’ll learn the 5 elements of any oral communication what you can learn from that annoying news anchor you can’t stand a quick way […]
A practical way to address unconscious bias in language
Over the course of last year, I spoke several times with an African American male physician. At one point, we were talking about his professional journey in medicine. He mentioned that he had learned to be more comfortable with, as he put it, “…being the only Black person in the room. Hearing ‘How did YOU […]
Do your assessments measure what matters?
It’s the time of year when we like to look back, and look forward. We set goals. We assess where we’ve been, where we are, where we’d like to be. But in health care, assessment and evaluation has a decidedly harder edge. One nurse manager in a physician practice told me, in passing, “I’m kind […]
What are you trying to teach your patient?
When’s the last time you thought about your goals for educating a patient? Really and honestly? As no-brainer as it may seem, you’d be surprised what you can gain from stopping and thinking about your patient education goals. Doing so can save you time and frustration. In this episode, you’ll learn: why thinking about goals […]
Infographic: Quickly assess your patient communication
What do I need to know about communication to be better at it? I hear this question, in one form or another, when speaking with health care professionals. And there’s no wonder why. When you’re dealing with so much complexity, your words have got to be clear. Getting a grip on your patient communication is essential. […]