According to the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association, “research has shown that effective patient-physician communication can improve a patient’s health as quantifiably as many drugs—perhaps providing a partial explanation for the powerful placebo effect seen in clinical trials.”
This shouldn’t be surprising as studies have shown for a while that the communication and interpersonal skills of the doctor improve patient’s compliance and overall satisfaction.
Today I will talk about why a doctor’s communication skills are vital for not only enhancing the clinical outcome but also for the overall growth of your practice.
Communication skills include listening skills, empathy, reading body language, tonality, pitch and volume.
What words you use to convey the prognosis of the disease, treatment options, procedures and the cost of the same is very important, but even more important is the way you say it.
The tone of your voice and your body language conveys much more than the words. In fact, just 7% percent of the meaning is communicated by words, the rest is communicated through body language and the tone.
The first communication skill that you need to master is the art of listening.
Being present and fully attentive to what the patient is saying is crucial, that means that not only are you paying attention to the words that the patients is saying but also you are aware of their emotions; this is key to creating rapport and being empathic and ultimately much higher levels of patient satisfaction.
Working on your communication skills will go a very long way in creating a trustworthy relationship with your patient, the results of which will be reflected in better clinical outcomes for the patient and also will positively impact the revenue of your clinic, as satisfied patients are definitly going to spread the word about their experience with you and refer people to you.
Now, great communication skills are also important in other areas of your clinic like marketing and staff interaction. But those are topics for another time.
Now that you know how important good communication skills are for you, start working on your communication skills with the patients and observe the immediate positive impact it has on the well-being of both your patient and your medical practice.
