CHC Think Tank Launches Clinician Communication Effectiveness Program to Coach Efficient and Empathetic Communication Strategies
By Billy Table, Ph.D.
The Center for Health Communication Think Tank has launched the Clinician Communication Effectiveness Program (CCEP) to equip healthcare providers with practical communication strategies and tools they can implement into their daily work immediately. Health communication specialists Dr. David Ring, Dr. Laura Brown, and Drew Coolidge have led virtual communication coaching sessions for several clinicians and already received positive feedback. The team offers efficient and empathetic strategies for navigating challenging patient conversations in which high emotions and uncertainty about illness and treatment are present. There are several common areas of uncertainty, including uncertainty about the kind of care they may receive; uncertainty about the cause of the condition; uncertainty about work and finances; and uncertainty as to whether or not a non-surgical treatment plan can help them feel better. Clinicians have highlighted the program’s usefulness in establishing patient trust and increasing confidence in communicating in difficult contexts.
One provider, a nurse practitioner, shared a difficult conversation they were planning to have with a patient – a 68-year-old woman with a shoulder injury sustained at work:
This patient’s work claim was now over a year old, and she had been now treated for adhesive capsulitis that reportedly developed early on in her course. After reviewing the records… we quickly concluded that her symptoms were no longer a result of her work injury. This filled me with anxiety, as I saw the potential for confrontation in having to explain this to the patient. Furthermore, the patient came to me very much in despair over her condition, citing her pain and limited mobility as great hindrances to not only her work but her activities of daily living. She was fixated on the idea that her symptoms were due to her injury, and was giving up hope that she would ever be “normal” again.
However, using the strategies championed by David Ring and Laura Brown, I was able to start with “I worry” and “I hope” language. I began by expressing to her how I hoped she would recover completely and quickly, and discussed the natural course of adhesive capsulitis. In using “I hope” language, I was able to separate myself from the illness, and feel less guilty for her current state, and in turn less anxious. I was actually taken aback by how a simple change in phrasing could immediately help put me at ease. And more so, I saw it bring the patient a sense of calm and reassurance as well.
I was also able to use “I worry” language to talk about my concerns over her catastrophic thinking, as well as unpacking the reasons for her persisting symptoms (as with an illness versus an injury), and this seemed to help. I feel like it went a long way in her starting to see me as an ally, rather than an adversary. Fast forward to now, I was able to discharge her this week. She has shown improved confidence and less despair, and I think it was due in no small part to the trusting foundation she and I were able to establish using these communication strategies.
The coach in this instance, Laura Brown, emphasizes that the “I worry” and “I hope” language may have initiated change at three levels: establishing a trusting and allied relationship between clinician and patient; helping the clinician feel less guilty and anxious, and helping the patient to feel calm, reassured, and confident. Within a 30-minute session, coaches provide evidence-based recommendations that are tailored to clinician needs and break down challenging conversations into impactful strategies.
At present, the CCEP offers small group virtual sessions and one-on-one coaching. If you’re interested in learning more or scheduling a session with the CCEP:
- Attend the next Think Tank Deep Dive on Thursday, March 25th from 2-3 p.m. (Zoom link).
- Reach out to the Think Tank CCEP team via email.