Communication with Children and Families Flashcards
1
Q
What is done to make a good introduction with children?
A
- Be friendly and smile
- Acknowledge child early on
- Get down on their level
- Utilise play
- Ask about child’s agenda
- Reflect on your own agenda
2
Q
What is done in a good examination of infants?
A
- Consider your facial expressions
- Child well positioned and comfortable
- Use of toys/distraction
- Maintains dialogue throughout
- Respond to child’s actions (smiles/eye contact)
- Describes normality
- Utilises parental skill of distracting child
- Reflects consideration of child and parents agenda
3
Q
What is done in a bad examination of infants?
A
- Examined on bed away from parent
- No interaction with child
- No use of toys
- Use of medical jargon
- Description potentially perceived as pathology
- Unrealistic expectation
- Reflects focus on own agenda
- Persistence despite distress
4
Q
What is done in a good examination of toddlers?
A
- Well positioned on parents knee (accepts suboptimal to avoid distress)
- Utilises play (illustration and distraction)
- Maintains dialogue throughout (always observing)
- Gradual exposure (listens through clothing)
- Eye contact (listens to back, positioned at front)
- Changes order depending on child (auscultation, palpation, percussion)
- Stops when child upset, settles, and resume
5
Q
What is ineffective communication?
A
- Parents perspective
- Doctor focused on their own agenda
- Illness trivialised (“just a cold”) – make perents feel guilty
- Hospital agenda placed above child’s own needs
- Questions and increasing concerns dismissed
- Unsure about next steps are ineffective closure
- Doctors perspective
- Doctor busy and has other tasks to do
- Night shift compromises cognitive processes
- Wants to prevent illness admissions
- Recognises the needs of other unwell patients
6
Q
What is effective communication?
A
- Patients perspective
- Doctor acknowledges challenges/stress of hospital admission
- Allows parent to speak and finish point made
- Concern acknowledged
- Aware of recurrence and sibling risk
- Big worries (meningitis/epilepsy) addressed without needing to ask
- Hears key information (no harm) several times
- Clearly explanation of next steps
- Given opportunity for further questions
- Doctors perspective
- Shows insight into parenteral perspective
- Seeks to clarify the parental understanding
- Clearly describes condition acknowledging understandable concern
- Addresses recurrence/sibling risk but emphasises key negatives
- Proactively anticipates concern (meningitis/epilepsy)
- Focuses on markers of health
- Explains the role/lack of role of investigations
- Clearly describes next steps
- Repeats key information
- Provides opportunity for questions