Week 10 PP Flashcards
Trust vs Trustworthiness
Trust is a characteristic, trustworthiness is a behaviour
Relationship trust is based on…
interpersonal skills
Relationship trust happens when someone feels safe enough to..
-Disclose personal information
-Display vulnerability
-Display confidence
Why is it important to develop Credibility with your Patients?
Patients need to feel that they can trust that you will follow through on what you say you will do.
To develop credibility with your patients, we must be:
-consistent
-keep your word
-develop your knowledge
-be a team player
-demonstrate dedication
-be respectful
-apologize when you are wrong
Patient trust can be built when we..
-communicate open and honestly
-show confidence in our abilities
-keep promises and commitments
-listen and value other opinions
-promote mutual cooperation
Top 5 behaviours that break trust are:
-focusing on your own self-interest
-sending mixed messages
-avoiding responsibility
-jumping to conclusions
-making excuses and blaming others
Patient Knowledge (Health Literacy)
-It is very important for a dental assistant to assess the level of patient knowledge and comprehension of the appointment.
No patient wants to feel foolish in any situation.
Provide info and guidance that is meaningful to them (what matters to the patient), rather than what we think is important
Managing Patient Dissatisfaction
How you respond to that person will determine whether they go away happy and satisfied or they just go away, possibly returning even more upset.
95% of unhappy patients never say so; they just leave the practice.
If a patient is sharing their dissatisfaction it is very important to list to them carefully.
Who is the most important person in the office?
The Patient!!
How to Resolve Patient Complaints
- Hear the patient out. Even if you feel personally attacked regarding your ability to do your job or about the office’s ability to accomplish a task, focus on the problem rather than the emotion.
- Acknowledge the patient’s concerns and demonstrate empathy for the person and the situation.
- Work with the dissatisfied patient to solve the problem. Conflict management skills and communication abilities are important for ensuring a win-win solution.
- Come to a solution that both parties agree to, and implement it within a specific period of time.
- Follow up with the patient to ensure that they are satisfied with the outcome.
What is Cultural Competence?
Cultural competence is the ability of an individual to understand and respect values, attitutes, beliefs, and more that differ across cultures, and to consider and respond appropriately to these differences in planning, implementing, and evaluating health education and promotion programs and interventions.
4 Skills for Cultural Competency
Awareness - Having the capacity for cultural self-assessment
Sensitivity - Becoming conscious of the microdynamics inherent in cultural interactions
Knowledge - Developing a knowledge base about other cultures
Skills - Reflecting competence in relationship
Cultural Sensitivity in Healthcare Communication
As HCWs we must have the ability to interact successfully with people from other cultures.
It is critical to be aware of one’s own cultural view, to acknowledge attitudes and practices of different cultures and to develop your own skills that ease interaction with people from different culutres.
Barriers to Providing Patient Care
-Previous dental experiences
-Patient’s attitudes and beliefs about the importance of their teeth
-Anxiety and fear (subjective and objective)
-dental phobic patients
-Physical and mental needs
-Financial needs
Psychological Needs
A factor of major importance is a patient’s current life situation; this includes stresses, tensions, conflicts, and anxieties that are present in the patient’s life.
Other considerations are a patient’s previous dental experiences and the patient’s attitudes and beliefs about the importance of their teeth.
Anxiety & Fear of Pain
Fear of pain is a huge cause of dental anxiety. However, for most patients it is the expectation of pain and not the pain itself that causes distress. Unfortunately the more fearful the patient is the more sensitive they may be to pain
What is Subjective Fear?
Acquired Fears - based on feelings and attitudes based on the suggestions from others (hearing horror stories from others). Inform the patient of what to expect with the appointment.
What is Objective Fear?
Learned fears - based upon experience or memory
Be honest when communicating with the patient
Dental Phobic Patients
Patients who have an overwhelming sensation of fear or panic with the mere suggestion of dental work
These patients usually avoid routine dental work and only come for emergency treatment.
Physical and Mental Needs
Patient medical and dental history should include questions about the patient’s dental and medical health.
Will alert the dental team to patients who require extra attention.
These patients have complicated and special needs that need to be considered before and during dental treatment.
Financial Strain
-Major obstacle to accepting treatment
-May think fees are too high, unable to afford or don’t need suggested work
-Many don’t relate dental care to basic needs like shelter & food
-Important to help patients understand the benefits and advantages of recommended treatment.
-Takes good communication skiils
How Status affects patient care?
In certain cultures lawyers and doctors hold
esteemed professional positions and some people may
agree with everything a professional says even though
they may not understand the content.
How Body Language affects patient care?
can interpret across different cultures.
Important that body language doesn’t confuse your
listener or convey unintentional insults or
misrepresentations.
How Ethnocentrism affects patient care?
when you perceive your own culture
as being better. Crucial to acknowledge the equal
importance of other cultures alongside our own.
What is Selective Listening?
preformed biases, prejudices,
stereotypes and expectations that can cause us to hear
what we want to instead of listening to what is said.
How past experiences effect communication?
assume the outcome of the
conversation based on past experiences. When we do
this we are not actually listening to our patient
How attitudes and emotions effect communication?
blaming, yelling, belittling
others in a conversation or being impatient because the
listener doesn’t understand. Talk “to” your patient rather
than “at” them and use language that is familiar to them.
What is Ethnocentrism?
The belief that your cultural traditions/values are
superior those of others
◦ The tendency to view different cultures from the
perspective of one’s own
Can Consist of feelings of superiority that can lead to
communication barriers
Ways to Improve Cross-Cultural Communication
Do not treat patients in the same manner you would want to be treated.
- Different cultures have different rules for appropriate polite behavior.
- Try to understand and be sensitive to each patient’s cultural values while fulfilling the
duties of your job.
Begin by being more formal with patients who were born in another
culture.
- Use formal titles like Ms. or Mr. when addressing patients.
- Do not speak in casual tones.
Do not worry if the patient fails to look you directly in the eyes or ask questions about the treatment.
- Such behavior may be a function of the patient’s cultural norms.
- In some cultures making eye contact is considered disrespectful.
- This may be a patient who is listening but looking at the floor.
Never assume that the patient is familiar with any particular type of dental procedure
Do not assume anything about the patient’s ideas about how to maintain good oral health
Different Primary Language Strategies
-Speak Slowly, Not loudly
-Avoid idiomatic expressions that may be difficult for the patient to undertsand
-Remember to paraphrase and summarize often
Using an Interpreter
Look at the patient (not the dental interpreter) and address the patient
directly.
- You are serving the patient, not the interpreter.
- It is appropriate to look at the patient. Do not interrupt the interpreter
- Doing this can confuse the communication to the patient and also undermine the interpreter’s ability in the eyes of the patient.
- Give the interpreter time to think.
Marginalized Populations
Inequities persist in certain communities.
Disproportionately affect:
* Low income individuals
* Minority groups
* Rural communities
* Indigenous communities
* Persons with disabilities and mobility challenges (including the elderly).
Determinants of Health
- Income and social status
- Employment and working conditions
- Education and literacy
- Childhood experiences
- Physical environments
- Social supports and coping skills
- Healthy behaviours
- Access to health services
- Biology and genetic endowment
- Gender
- Culture
- Race / Racism
Health Literacy in Oral Health Outcomes
- Extent to which individuals can access, understand and use basic health information and services to make informed decisions about their oral health.
- Improving health literacy can ensure that patients can take better care of their health.
- Achieved through clear communication to ensure that they understand the information and minimize the risk of miscommunication.
Plain Language
- Health decisions must be based on a clear understanding of health information.
- Barriers like: low health literacy, cultural differences and navigating a complex healthcare system make this challenging.
- Use clear and plain language to communicate information and services.
Strategies to Promote Effective Communication
- Maintain a calm, courteous manner.
- Listen carefully when patients or other health care workers are speaking.
- Monitor patients appropriately, in order to ensure their safety.
- Perform tasks efficiently and carefully.
- Do not gossip about patients or other health care workers.
- Do not use coarse or offensive language.
- Do not practice horseplay or other dangerous behaviors.
- Watch for hazardous situations and correct any hazards that you see.
Respecting a patient means respecting their
feelings and their needs. Ways in which to
respect the feelings of others include:
- Asking how they are feeling before making a decision that will affect them.
- Validating their feelings.
- Empathizing with them.
- Seeking understanding of their feelings.
- Taking their feelings into consideration.
Some ways to show respect include:
- Asking others how they feel before making a decision that will affect them.
- Voluntarily making changes and compromises to accommodate the patient’s feelings and needs.
- Not interrupting the patient.
- Soliciting and allowing feedback.
- Avoiding giving unsolicited advice, sermons or lectures.
- Creating a safe environment that provides your patients with a feeling of security and control.
- Providing knowledge about procedures to a patient in a way that is calming and reassuring.
Resources That Support the Delivery of
Culturally Appropriate Dental Care
- Peer oral health promoters: messages reflect the oral health beliefs and practices of the intended audience.
- Bilingual or bicultural staff
- Trained interpreters (foreign or sign language)
- Materials in alternative formats (braille, larger font, audiotape)
- Print material in other languages (Post Op Instructions and legally binding documents)
- Listen respectfully (active listening)
