Chapter 11: Professionalism
Anita Hedlund
Communication Related to Safe Patient Care
In relation to professionalism, clear communication is one of the most important aspects of being a professional. Most errors in healthcare can be attributed to a breakdown in communication. Inadequate or wrong information about something or someone can lead to severe mistakes that not only can cause harm to patients or workers, but could have legal and financial repercussions for the organization. Something as simple as properly labeling a container can be critical in protecting someone from a chemical burn.
According to Julia Riley (2023) “building positive coworker relationships, teamwork, and collaboration supports clear communication, which has a direct effect on patient safety” (p. 6).
When urgent or emergent care is being provided and there are many people in a room attending to a patient, it can be loud and chaotic but people need to hear and acknowledge what they are tasked with. For example, a provider may call out “give the patient 1 milligram of medication!” Someone on the team needs to make eye contact with the provider and say “I am getting the medication” so the whole team is aware of the request and the response, two people are not doing the same thing which would be inefficient, and the message is not lost.
Delegation is often used in healthcare. A nurse may ask the nursing assistant to check a patient’s blood pressure. The nursing assistant should then employ closed-loop communication and check back with the nurse to report either what the numbers were, or that they were unable to complete the task and why. This way the nurse is not left wondering how the patient is doing or if a concern needs to be addressed. Verifying what was asked of you, especially if anything is unclear, is so important.
When communicating with patients, family and visitors as well as other employees, be aware if they have deficits in hearing, vision, or English language skills. Find an appropriate communication method such as using a louder volume with your voice, large print written material, or a language interpreter. Keep everyone informed as to choices and next steps. It helps reduce anxiety when people know what to expect. This builds trust with patients as they can see the healthcare workers are reliable and consistent in providing information.
It is also important to ask for help when you need it. Letting a supervisor know when a patient is not doing well, the clinic waiting room is backed up, a team member is out ill, or the amount of work is overwhelming and cannot be completed in the expected timeframe are all key to safe management of the workflow and meeting care needs.
When there is a serious event or error, it is important to have a debrief afterward. The team involved comes together to review a factual synopsis of events, what went well, and what could be improved if the scenario were to arise again in the future. Were there any safety concerns that needed