A career in healthcare is not just about diagnoses and medication. Recently, we started merging different fields like psychology, education, and technology with a dash of soft skills with healthcare, and the results came out to be astounding! This was the answer that we have been searching for – to provide compassion and care side by side.
Here is a list of six ways to improve patient care and how these methods can be put into action.
- Listening Actively to Patients
One of the easiest soft skills to learn is the skill of listening. Contrary to popular belief, you do not only listen with your ears. You also listen with your posture, your gestures, and your eyes. The art of active listening makes use of your entire body language to make your patients feel at home while talking to you. It makes them trust you, which is critical in a healthcare setting.
To achieve this, the main step is to give your full attention to your patients. When you angle your body towards your patient and maintain eye contact, it makes your patient more trusting. The next step is to ask follow-up questions without interrupting your patients. You can achieve this by looking for cues that your patient has stopped speaking, and then asking very specific questions that stem directly from their description of their problem.
- Investing in Staff Education
Education has always been a priority in healthcare, but not everyone can afford it! Since the healthcare field is sensitive and deals with life-and-death situations (Literally!), it is very important that they are all well-educated and well-trained. Patients notice when staff are informed and up-to-date, and this trust improves the entire care experience.
Now, not everyone in your staff can afford a fancy medical school with expensive tuition. A lot of nurses and paramedics can only afford a diploma before they start working full-time. In such cases, you can look into affordable RN to BSN online programs which allow you to take classes and submit assignments whenever you get time, at your own pace. Got a double shift? You can wait for your day off!
- Creating a Comfortable Environment
The very first thing that the patients notice is the environment. Is the space clean? Is it airy and bright? Does it smell nice? A classic “hospital smell” immediately puts the patients at unease. Is it too cramped? Too crowded? Too cluttered? While comfort is not directly linked to well-being, it helps tone down the patient’s anxiety levels. When patients step into a well-lit, well-aired, well-spaced area that is easy to navigate, and get a warm reception at the very start, they immediately feel calmer and trusting, which can ultimately make a big difference in the quality of care.
- Improving Communication Between Teams
I’m sure there were times when you became frustrated going from one doctor to the next, that too in the same hospital! At that time, you may have wondered if there was any point in all these pointless referrals where we start again from square one, wasting valuable time. This happens when healthcare providers suffer from something called “good communication”. This happens when they fail to update the other provider on the progress or the updates. For example, a physiotherapist may need regular updates from an orthopedic specialist so they can align the therapy with the latest results. When this is compromised, care is compromised!
Daily team check-ins, shared digital notes, and quick update meetings help everyone stay on the same page.
- Using Technology to Support Care
Modern tools can improve patient care in many ways. Now that technology has advanced so much, it is much easier to keep track of records. Electronic health records, for example, make sure that relevant doctors and nurses can view and update patient information. Thanks to technology, medical errors have significantly reduced.
Technology also supports virtual care. Telehealth is such a groundbreaking innovation in this regard, which gives you full premium access to healthcare services even if you are in a faraway land with no hint of a healthcare center anyplace near.
- Focusing on Mental and Emotional Health
Physical health is not the measure of perfect health! You can be physically healthy and mentally unhealthy, and you would require treatment. Unfortunately, emotional health gets sidelined in a lot of cases. If your patient has a physical health condition and is excessively anxious about it, chances of a speedy recovery become almost non-existent.
The counter for this is easy! Simply ask the patient how they are feeling. Give them a chance and a safe space to voice their fears, so you can gauge their emotional state and offer support accordingly.
In conclusion, great patient care doesn’t require perfect technology or expensive tools. It does not even require you to be the best in business. It depends equally on people skills, like listening, learning, and communicating, as much as it depends on technical expertise. When healthcare workers feel supported and trained, they treat patients better. And when patients feel seen and heard, they heal better.
Image by Pranidchakan Boonrom from Pexels
The editorial staff of Medical News Bulletin had no role in the preparation of this post. The views and opinions expressed in this post are those of the advertiser and do not reflect those of Medical News Bulletin. Medical News Bulletin does not accept liability for any loss or damages caused by the use of any products or services, nor do we endorse any products, services, or links in our Sponsored Articles.
A career in healthcare is not just about diagnoses and medication. Recently, we started merging different fields like psychology, education, and technology with a dash of soft skills with healthcare, and the results came out to be astounding! This was the answer that we have been searching for – to provide compassion and care side by side. Here is a list of six ways to improve patient care and how these methods can be put into action. One of the easiest soft skills to learn is the skill of listening. Contrary to popular belief, you do not only listen with your ears. You also listen with your posture, your gestures, and your eyes. The art of active listening makes use of your entire body language to make your patients feel at home while talking to you. It makes them trust you, which is critical in a healthcare setting. To achieve this, the main step is to give your full attention to your patients. When you angle your body towards your patient and maintain eye contact, it makes your patient more trusting. The next step is to ask follow-up questions without interrupting your patients. You can achieve this by looking for cues that your patient has stopped speaking, and then asking very specific questions that stem directly from their description of their problem. Education has always been a priority in healthcare, but not everyone can afford it! Since the healthcare field is sensitive and deals with life-and-death situations (Literally!), it is very important that they are all well-educated and well-trained. Patients notice when staff are informed and up-to-date, and this trust improves the entire care experience. Now, not everyone in your staff can afford a fancy medical school with expensive tuition. A lot of nurses and paramedics can only afford a diploma before they start working full-time. In such cases, you can look into affordable RN to BSN online programs which allow you to take classes and submit assignments whenever you get time, at your own pace. Got a double shift? You can wait for your day off! The very first thing that the patients notice is the environment. Is the space clean? Is it airy and bright? Does it smell nice? A classic “hospital smell” immediately puts the patients at unease. Is it too cramped? Too crowded? Too cluttered? While comfort is not directly linked to well-being, it helps tone down the patient’s anxiety levels. When patients step into a well-lit, well-aired, well-spaced area that is easy to navigate, and get a warm reception at the very start, they immediately feel calmer and trusting, which can ultimately make a big difference in the quality of care. I’m sure there were times when you became frustrated going from one doctor to the next, that too in the same hospital! At that time, you may have wondered if there was any point in all these pointless referrals where we start again from square one, wasting valuable time. This happens when healthcare providers suffer from something called “good communication”. This happens when they fail to update the other provider on the progress or the updates. For example, a physiotherapist may need regular updates from an orthopedic specialist so they can align the therapy with the latest results. When this is compromised, care is compromised! Daily team check-ins, shared digital notes, and quick update meetings help everyone stay on the same page. Modern tools can improve patient care in many ways. Now that technology has advanced so much, it is much easier to keep track of records. Electronic health records, for example, make sure that relevant doctors and nurses can view and update patient information. Thanks to technology, medical errors have significantly reduced. Technology also supports virtual care. Telehealth is such a groundbreaking innovation in this regard, which gives you full premium access to healthcare services even if you are in a faraway land with no hint of a healthcare center anyplace near. Physical health is not the measure of perfect health! You can be physically healthy and mentally unhealthy, and you would require treatment. Unfortunately, emotional health gets sidelined in a lot of cases. If your patient has a physical health condition and is excessively anxious about it, chances of a speedy recovery become almost non-existent. The counter for this is easy! Simply ask the patient how they are feeling. Give them a chance and a safe space to voice their fears, so you can gauge their emotional state and offer support accordingly. In conclusion, great patient care doesn’t require perfect technology or expensive tools. It does not even require you to be the best in business. It depends equally on people skills, like listening, learning, and communicating, as much as it depends on technical expertise. When healthcare workers feel supported and trained, they treat patients better. And when patients feel seen and heard, they heal better. Image by Pranidchakan Boonrom from Pexels The editorial staff of Medical News Bulletin had no role in the preparation of this post. The views and opinions expressed in this post are those of the advertiser and do not reflect those of Medical News Bulletin. Medical News Bulletin does not accept liability for any loss or damages caused by the use of any products or services, nor do we endorse any products, services, or links in our Sponsored Articles.
