Healthcare Communication Method
Danielle Vaughn
June 13, 2016
HCS/320
Instructor Regina McDade

Health Care Communication Methods

Customer Service is also known as communication which is definitely needed when it concerns an elderly loved one. Having an elderly family member is a very delicate situation and it is tough to face the fact that your Grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles, and possibly siblings with illnesses such as Alzheimer’s and Dementia that would possibly need care in a nursing home.
As an Administrator of a Nursing Home you could be confronted with many diverse situations and because patients in a nursing home are occasionally incapable of understanding or communicating on their own, it is vital to have interaction with quite a few family members in case of an emergency. Relatives of these elderly patients still have lives of their own and may live in different states or countries and in some cases,you have some patients in Nursing Homes who do not have family members at all. Most of the time there will be a social worker who is responsible for the wellbeing of these patients in this type of situation.
There is an enormous misunderstanding of the role of communication services in healthcare.
Nursing home administrators act as the patient's liaison between staff and doctors, in the event that a Nursing Home receives notification that the organization is being purchased by a national group, and because of new policies to be implemented, many of the patients will be displaced, it is important to know the way to communicate with each individuals family members. Residents have rights and these rights being violated can cause serious issues with the law. Below is a short list of patients’ rights when concerning unfair transfer or discharge.

Protection against Unfair Transfer or Discharge:
It is necessary for the welfare, health, or safety of you or others.
Your health has declined to the point that the nursing home can't meet your care needs.
Your health has improved to the point that nursing home care is no longer necessary.
The nursing home hasn't been paid for services you received.
Nursing home closes
In this scenario it is important that you inform the residents that they are being displaced

and that they need to approve the release of their medical information. The best way to do this,

since it is concerning medical records, would be privately. HIPAA protects the privacy of

individually identifiable health information and if violated you could face jail time and hefty

fines so you should use the best communication method that fits the scenario. The best method of

communication I thought would be best for this scenario was traditional and electronic

communication because they both have some convenience to the residents. The right amount of

information and the right information is needed to explain to family members and patients what is happening to this facility. Finding the right laws and rights is what needs to happen to make

sure the company is not in violation of that patient. Finding the best way to communicate with

each patient and their family is most important when it comes to getting the message across

professionally without seeming to disregard their personal concerns.

There are advantages and disadvantages of using social media, traditional, and electronic

communication .Traditional, the oldest of the three some of the many advantages that tradition

communication has is that you are person with the person you are communicating with, which is

better because you are getting an immediate reply to whatever it is that you are trying to get.

There’s a feeling of community because you’re better able to socialize and interact with one

another. We quickly build a bond that sets the foundation for trust and ultimately, lasting

business relationships.

There are so many different issues that have to be considered when communicating with

patients and their family members, in this scenario most likely there will need to be some

convincing that this is best for the patient/ their loved ones. Displacing them does not have to be

a “bad thing” it all depends on how it is presented to them and their reaction to the initial

breaking of the news. It is important that the administrator has found a new facility that offers

everything that the patients(s) will need to accommodate them completely. Communication is a

part of the process to better the patient’s life and once the patient and/or their family is on board

then you pretty much have “tackled the mountain”. “Forcing information on people when they

are too distraught to understand it or accept it (over informing) may only heighten their stress.

Philip Muskin(1998) calls this “truth dumping” and warns people against it. Health-related Information can be confusing and frightening.” It is best to not provide unnecessary information

to the patients and family members, just enough for them to understand completely.

(Communication About Health Pg. 196)

Being and Administrator means being able to communicate effectively with your patients no

matter their mental and health condition and being able to communicate with their family

members too. It is important to not “over-do” anything when communicating because it could

cause a reaction you don’t want to deal with. There are different ways of communicating

messages and different tones and as an Administrator in this particular scenario it is important to

know what tone of communication to use when letting the patients and their family members

know what is going on. It is a good idea to know where the patient will be transferred to and to have a brochure and good information on where the patient is going so that maybe the family member and the patients will be comfortable about the big news.
References:
1. Journal Article . (2014, Fall). People living with dementia: components of

communication, (Pg.1).

2. . (2005). Communicating About Health Current Issues And Perspectives. Retrieved from,

HCS/320 Health Care Communication Strategies website