Review Strategies Used in Health and Social Care Environments Essay

M2, review strategies used in health and social care environments to overcome barriers to effective communication and interpersonal interactions. D1, evaluate strategies used in health and social care to overcome barriers to effective communication and interpersonal interactions. Introduction There are many differing ideas on the best way to communicate in health and social care and there are many strategies used by the many differing professionals working in health and social care. This assignment will review the different strategies used and then will evaluate the differing strategies and their effectiveness when overcoming barriers to effective communication and interpersonal interactions. M2; There are lots of different strategies used in health and social care and all of these strategies have their strengths and weaknesses this assignment is going to review if these strategies are successful or not. The strategies that will be looked at are staff training, reflective listening, individual preference, the environment and awareness of non-verbal communication. Reflective listening www.skillsforlife.co.uk believe the strength of Reflective listening as a strategy in health and social care is it builds the clients self-esteem and lets them know that you are interested in what they are saying and keeps a conversation going and by repeating what is been said to you lets the client know that you are professional and listening to what they have to say. The weakness of reflective listening is if the client has low self-esteem before the conversation starts or is angry or upset the client may feel that the service provider is not helping by just repeating what is being said to them and this could anger the client further or the client will just refuse to talk. Staff training www.skillsforlife.co.uk suggest that the strength of staff training is that it allows for constant updates in which service provides are always up to date on the latest strategies on overcoming barriers to communication and this leads to a better understanding of how barriers can happen and gives them the tools to take control and remedy the situation. www.skillsforlife.co.uk also suggest that the weaknesses that can arise due to staff training is that the member of staff loses time with clients while attending courses and may not be able to attend all training opportunities so this can lead to a gap in training and the member of staff not knowing all the latest strategies and this in turn can make things difficult for clients as they are not being given correct and up to information. Individual preference www.skillsforlife.co.uk believe the strength of individual preference is that it allows the client to choose the best way for them to be able to communicate that makes them feel comfortable and this in turn makes it easier for the member of staff as they have a client who is open and willing to talk and this also allows for staff to make appropriate arrangements if an interpreter or signer is needed www.skillsforlife.co.uk also believe that the weaknesses of individual preference is that staff may not have time to find someone to interpret or sign for them and they may not know sign language themselves and also not have time to arrange for these needs before the first meeting with the client. Environment www.skillsforlife.co.uk suggest that the positives that come from the environment that the conversation is taking place in are that for example in a counselling session the environment needs to be quiet so the client can communicate with ease and confidence knowing that they are being listened too. This helps the messages to be understood. www.skillsforlife.co.uk also suggest that the negatives can be that staff do not always have the time to assess all situations and as a lot of the space is used by other professionals such as doctors and nurses the environment cannot always be prepared in advance. Awareness of non-verbal communication According to www.skillsforlife.co.uk, making professionals aware of their non-verbal communication is a good way of overcoming barriers and the professional can ensure the proximity between them and client is a good distance but not too far away, and being aware of this is a good a lot of the way be communicate comes from body language and facial expression and professionals who are aware of this can improve their practice and the emotional needs of clients. www.skillsforlife.co.uk also believe that a negative side to this is that not all professionals have time to learn about this and also a lot of the time our emotions, facial expressions and body language is sub-conscious and not controlled. D1; This part of the assignment will evaluate the strategies used in health and social care. It will evaluate the pros and cons of communication and how they are used to overcome barriers to communication and interpersonal skills. Strategies are used in health and social care to give the service users the best possible chance of getting back to full health as soon as possible and provide on-going treatment or care into the future as and when it is no longer required. They are in place to promote independence and to make caring for someone as pleasant and easy experience for both staff and service user, and according to K.Bryan et al, ageing and mental health (2002) Studies suggest that a high proportion of older people in residential and nursing care have communication difficulties and there is some awareness of the need for staff training to allow effective communication to be achieved. Not working in the sector the only experiences to draw on are in the voluntary sector, working with an elderly lady in the early stages of dementia, It will be using these experiences to evaluate the pros and cons as to whether the way strategies are used are effective or not. The strategies it will be evaluating are reflective listening, staff training, individual preference, environment and non-verbal communication. Neil Moonie et al effective communication in health and social care (2012), Reflective listening can both be a help and a hindrance when communicating with dementia patients as it does depend on the service user and the sort of day they are having some days they are in the present and other days they are in the past so the trick is to adjust the way you reflect back to suit the conversation you are having as not to confuse the service user and keep the conversation going, in my opinion reflective listening is an important tool in breaking down barriers as it gives everyone a chance to air their views and be understood as to what they want, need and require. Neil Moonie et al effective communication in health and social care (2012), Staff training as a tool for overcoming barriers to communication is very important as without it staff working in the sector would not be able to serve their clients in the best way possible they would not have the knowledge to look after their patients in a safe and healthy way and this in turn will anger and or scare the patients so that they refuse help which could be detrimental to their health. In my opinion staff training is an effective way of keeping up to date on the latest skills and other ways of making sure all clients are safe and well in your care. Neil Moonie et al effective communication in health and social care (2012), Individual preference is important as a tool to overcome communication barriers as it makes the client comfortable and this in turn helps them to relax and open to talking, for those who have difficulty communicating keeping to their way of doing things also helps the client to relax and not to feel anxious because they are in a strange place and may be feeling confused and unsure of what is going on. In my opinion individual preference is important as it centres care on what is best for the client to make them as happy and relaxed as possible. Neil Moonie et al effective communication in health and social care (2012), Environment is an important tool for both client and staff, for clients it is important that things are familiar and as normal as possible and helps the service user to feel relaxed as with individual preference if they have difficulty communicating they will feel anxious and confused so a familiar environment will put them at easel, for staff the environment is important so they can perform their duties with ease and using the same environment for each client allows the staff member to know where everything is and the repetitive nature will reassure the client that nothing’s changed. Neil Moonie et al effective communication in health and social care (2012), Non-verbal communication the way we communicate non-verbally plays a part in overcoming barriers to communication because if our body language is negative such as no eye contact, this will impact on the client and may make them feel insecure and not willing to communicate, whereas a positive attitude will help the client to open up to you and be more willing to talk. Conclusion Strategies in communication are important as they help to overcome the difficulties some people face on a day to day basis, these strategies also help to decide what works and what dos not when working with service users in a health and social care setting Reference Stretch, B, Whitehouse, M, (2010) Btec level 3 health and social care book 1, Harlow, Pearson Education LTD K. Bryan, L. Axelrod, J. Maxim, L. Bell & L. Jordan Journal: Aging & Mental Health Volume 6, Issue 3, August 2002, pages 248-254 Neil Moonie et al effective communication in health and social care (2012) pages 1-45 http//www.skillsyouneed.co.uk 2012/ips/barriers-communication 20/12/2012