A few weeks ago, I read a tweet from Dr. Javeed Sukhera about terminology and mental health. The tweet had ‘gone viral,’ and it’s stayed in my mind since then. Next time someone says "mental health" what if we took out "mental" and just said "health?" "I need time off for my health." "I need […]
Reflective Practice
4 ways to help resist a deficit perspective
Deficit perspectives are sneaky. Maybe the better word is ‘insidious.’ They can worm their way quietly into our work. And when there, they do real damage. Maybe you’ve heard the term. If not, it’s a tendency to maintain a focus on negative instances, examples, or qualities. Like seeing patients as passive recipients. Or centering on what […]
Because health communication isn’t one-size-fits-all
Right now, I’m working on a webinar. It’ll be the first in a series of three, for Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health through the Region 2 Public Health Training Center. I’ve been working on it quite a while, and I’m excited about it. It’s scheduled for June, and it’s free and open to […]
Learn two steps to help improve your health communication
“I was listening for the pain. I kept listening for the pain.” This was what a physician said during our debriefing after a role-play. She was the ‘attending,’ another physician played the ‘patient,’ and I was the observer. The role-play was a brief initial patient consultation. During the debrief, we were focused on communication. The […]
Two structural concerns that can bog down interprofessional communication
I was talking recently to a health administrator about communication between different groups in the hospital system. He said, “Interdepartmental communication has been historically very difficult. There were different incentives that made working together something people didn’t want to do. If your department didn’t make the numbers, you’re in trouble, you’re the one out of […]
5 Tips to help your interprofessional communication
Over the last six weeks, four different health care professionals have asked me about interprofessional communication. Two were public health administrators, one was a medical educator, and one was a physician-administrator. All four were in different organizations. I don’t know why the sudden uptick. But I am taking notice, and taking this chance to share […]