Auditory and Visual

Question 1

Communication

Answer 1

• Communication Matters
  
  • It is the Veterinarian’s responsibility
    
    • an essential task that cannot be delegated
    • can have lasting effects
  • Communication is a procedure
    
    • the most common procedure
    • most vets conduct >160,000 interviews during their career
    • can be learned
    • mastry requires practive and experience
  • Health Outcomes:
    
    • Diagnosis
    • Adherence to medications / treatments
  • Social Outcomes:
    
    • Client satifactions
    • Practice success
    • Malpractice risk reduction

Question 2

Basic communication tools

Answer 2

• Rapport
• Open-ended questions
• Non-verbal communicatino
• Reflective listening
• empathy

Question 3

Rapport

Answer 3

A close and harmonious relationship which the people or groups concerned understand each other’s feelings or ideas and communicate well

• Builds trust and likeability
• improved compliance
• Helps us to see clients as people, and vis a versa
• Builds through visits
  
  • consider keeping some notes on the client in their record

Question 4

Close-ended questions

Answer 4

• Narrowly framed questions for a specific pupoe
• answer is “yes” “no” or other one-word responses

Question 5

Open-ended Questions

Answer 5

• Broadly framed questions
• Requires respondent to elaborate on the question
• Usually begin with:
  
  • What…
  • How…
  • Tell me…
  • Share with me…
  • Describe to me…
• Avoid “why” questions, can be see as confrontational

Question 6

Common Pitfalls

Answer 6

• Failure to Pause:
  
  • Ask an OE question then pause,
  • clients will need a moment to formulate a response
• Closing the question:
  
  • ​Most commonly a result of failure to pause
  • Ex: tell me abou tthe diarrehea. Is there any blood in it?
• Interrupting:
  
  • ​MDs interrupted their patients after 18 seconds, don’t be that vet

Question 7

Non-verbal communication

Answer 7

Includesall behavioral signals that go on between interacting indiciduals, exclusive of verbal content

Roughly 80% of communication is nonverbal

Four categories:

• Kinesics: Facial expression, bod tension, gestures, touch, body position
• Proxemics: Spatial relationships, barriers
• Paralanguage: Voice tone, rate, rhythm, volume, emphasis
• Autonomic changes: Flushing, blanching, tearing, sweating, changes in breathing, changes in pupil size, involuntary swallowing

Question 8

Basic Behavior

Answer 8

• Safety:
  
  • ​Basic human need: self-protection and self preservation
  • change involves risk, clients less inclined to consider or act in new ways w/o safety
  • Body will be engaged (leaning forward), open stance, variety to gestures and voice
• Not-Safe
  
  • ​If safety is not present, cliens will respond with :
    
    • fight: Decreased distance, high body tension, fist/jaw clenched, head lowered, deeper breathing, flaring nostrils, voice volume increased
    • flight: disengaged, arms / legs crossed, head turned away, skin blanched, shallow breathing, strained / hesitant voice

Question 9

Addressing mixed messages

Answer 9

• Notive incongruence in client’sverbal and nonverbal messages
  
  • nonverbal messages more truly reflect client’s actual feelings and predicts behavior
• Acknowledge discrepancy
• Use language of the 3rd person
  
  • “other clients with this concern”

Question 10

Shaping Space

Answer 10

1. Setting the stage:
   
   • Every part of the clinic sends a message of invitation or dis-invitation
   • Arange space to encourage access and comfot for both client and animal to relax
2. Vertical Height differences:
   
   • ​May exaggerate the client’s diadvantaged position
   • Bewilling to change your position to the same level or below if possible
3. Interpersonal Distace:
   
   • ​If too close, client may feel encroached upon
   • If too far, may dicourage engagement and conve sense of disinterest
4. Angles of facing:
   
   • ​Directly opposite is ore confrontational
   • side-by-side conveys partnership
   • presence of the pet modulates the human-to-human encounter
5. Physical barriers
   
   • ​Can go around them or move them out of the way
   • Comment on them if fixed
   • or not if the barrier is useful to the veterinarian and/or the client

Question 11

Reflective Listening

Answer 11

Stating back the content or feelings behind the client’s message

• demonstrates active listening- conveys a message that the client is being heard
• Also ensures that we have heard the correct message
• Give client a chance to correct us if we make a mistake
• Verbal:
  
  • Repeat client’s words, summarizing, validating
• Non-verbal:
  
  • Eye contact, body posture, mirroring, avoiding distractions

Question 12

Empathy

Answer 12

• Ability to understand and share the feelings of another
  
  • Different than sympathy: feelings of pity/sorrow for someone else’s misfortune
• Use of empathetic statements or gestures convey a message to the client that tey have been heard and accepted
• Listen to the story
• Express your understanding
• Reflect: “sounds like you’re concerned….”
• Legitimize and Normalize: “anyone would feel….”
• Self-disclosure: example involving yourself
• Build partnership: “….figure this out together….”