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Patient-centered care means people are the heart of treatment plans. To correctly assess needs and goals, doctors must listen carefully to their patients. In this blog, we will look at what effective listening skills are and the benefits they offer the physician and patient alike.
What are Effective Listening Skills?
Effective listening skills help the healthcare provider engage in a meaningful way with the patient. How well you listen to what someone is telling you helps you both identify problems and develop steps to solve them.
Listening well is so important to the doctor-patient relationship. What patients tell you about what they feel, when it happens, and other details flesh out the clinical picture.
In other words, diagnosing and treating health conditions involves more than gathering clinical data from lab tests, examination and other elements of an in-office assessment. It is about listening and responding to the deepest of patient concerns.
Here are just some of the elements of effective listening skills you should use as a physician.
Active Listening
Active listening means giving the patient your undivided attention. Show that you are 100 percent present in the conversation. This includes using nonverbal cues such as nodding, maintaining eye contact and being in a relaxed but attentive posture.
Asking Clarifying Questions
Effective listeners ask questions to clarify any confusing or unclear information. Asking specific questions will help you better understand the patient’s message. Questions also show that you truly are engaged in the conversation.
Paraphrasing What Your Patient Has Expressed
Rephrase what the patient has said using your own words. You will show that you have understood his or her message accurately. Paraphrasing also gives the speaker a chance to correct any misunderstanding or provide additional details.
Validate Your Patient’s Emotions
Listening is not just about understanding the words being said but also, the emotions behind them. A skilled listener acknowledges these emotions. As a doctor, show empathy for what your patient feels and thinks. Deeper connections with your patients will result.
Avoiding Any Kind of Distraction
Effective listeners tune out external distractions such as phone notifications, background noise and even their own thoughts and worries. Fully focus on the conversation. Give truly undivided attention to your patient.
Avoiding Interruptions
Interrupting someone during important conversation is disrespectful. Effective listeners wait for appropriate pauses or cues from their patients before interjecting their own thoughts or questions into the dialogue.
Answering Patient Questions
Part of effective listening is developing accurate responses to patient questions. It also involves showing that you are willing to answer them completely and respectfully.
Sometimes, too, questions may be implicit in conversations. Through active listening, you perceive questions and concerns patients have but are reluctant, or do not have the right words to ask about.
A doctor who is listening effectively may say, “I think I hear some concern about this. Am I right? Well, then let’s talk about that more.”
Summarizing What Has Been Discussed
Summarize what your patient has shared with you. This shows that you have been paying attention. Summarizing key points also helps you clarify what may be confusing and affirms what the patient has said.
Benefits of Effective Listening
Effective listening will improve your in-office assessments and diagnoses. You can avoid unnecessary hospital emergency room visits, admissions and readmissions, too. Your patients will better follow your instructions for immediate and long-term health issues.
However, most importantly, you will develop a valuable bond of trust and respect with your patients. When you listen well, patients feel respected. They see you as the 5-star healthcare provider that you are. Your practice will grow in patient satisfaction, referrals, positive reputation and more.
Developing Excellent Patient Care in Miami, FL
At Premier Physicians Support Services, our experienced team develops customized management solutions for a wide range of medical practices. As one of our valued provider partners, you will learn all about the elements of high-quality patient care and management of your practice from a business standpoint.
Join the Premier Physicians Support Services community! To learn more about us, call (305) 273-9100. You also may find out more about becoming a provider member here. We look forward to hearing from you soon.
