Time management during patient consultations
Effective listening and an agreed understanding of the purpose
and limitations of the consultation have significant impact on time
management during patient consultations.
Communication is an essential part of health care. No matter how
knowledgeable the physician might be, if he/she is not able to open
good communication channels with the patient, he/she may be of
little or no help to the patient, with resultant little, or even
negative effect on health outcomes.
When a patient can talk freely at the beginning of a
consultation they will usually provide you with much useful
information about themselves and the effect of their illness or
condition.
In attempts to 'hurry the patient up', many doctors will
interrupt their patients before their patient has had time to talk
freely and thus the patient feels they have not been 'heard'. Yet
if the doctor was to give the patient 60 to 90 seconds of
uninterrupted listening then the patient will have been heard, and
will also feel they have been heard, and will have given the doctor
significant information to improve their diagnosis - indeed
patients will often, in these days of internet use, provide the
doctor with their own diagnosis, which can be surprisingly
accurate. Further, if the patient is uninterrupted for 60 to 90
seconds, then the patient's 'story/history' will usually have been
heard in far less time than if the doctor constantly (and
mistakenly) interrupts the patient in an attempt to shorten the
consultation time. Studies have shown that few patients will talk
for more than 90 seconds when telling their story.
Patients who feel they have been 'heard' are more willing to
follow advice and instructions, and are more willing to ask
questions or inform you of difficulties. Engagement of the patient
is key to effective consultations - this includes the opportunity
to be heard, an agreed understanding of the problem/s, an agreed
understanding on options and the next steps, and an agreed
understanding of limitations and expectations of treatment.
Effective communication has multiple benefits, including:
- Improvement in diagnostic accuracy
- Improved adherence to treatment regimen
- Increased trust in the clinician
- Improved patient satisfaction
- Improved clinician satisfaction
- Reduced medical malpractice risk.
The Four Habits Approach to Effective Clinical Communication
(Permamente Medical Group 1999)
The 'Four Habits' model is the centrepiece of an approach taken
by one large health care organisation in the USA, Kaiser
Permanente, to enhance the clinical communication and relationship
skills of their clinicians. The model has served as the foundation
for a diverse array of communication programs. The goals of the
Four Habits are to establish rapport and build trust rapidly,
facilitate the effective exchange of information, demonstrate
caring and concern, and increase the likelihood of adherence and
positive health outcomes.
The Four Habits are:
- Invest in the Beginning
- Elicit the Patient's Perspective
- Demonstrate Empathy
- Invest in the End
Beckman and Frankel (1984) analysed how doctors' use of words
and questions can easily and inadvertently direct the patient away
from disclosing their reasons for wishing to see the doctor, and
found that:
- By allowing the patient to complete their opening statement,
there was a reduction in late-arising problems.
- The longer the doctor waited before interrupting, the more
medical problems were elicited.
- Patients who were allowed to complete their opening statement
without interruption mostly took less than 60 seconds and none took
longer than 150 seconds, even when encouraged to continue.
Improving your practice
Figure: Areas to improve your practice for patient
consultations
Engage the patient:
- Introduce yourself and greet the patient. Communicate warmth
and welcome the patient to your setting. Awareness of psychological
safety is important; we all feel safer when we feel welcomed,
valued and accepted.
- Ensure the patient is comfortable and acknowledge if they have
been waiting for some time to see you etc.
- Always see the patient as a person who has feelings, values and
thoughts.
- Set the scene: if the patient is having a procedure or a test
then talk to the patient about what will happen today.
- Find out the patient's expectation or goal for the visit. This
may differ from the presenting complaint. At times, it may be as
simple as getting a form signed. Frequently, gaining reassurance is
the patient's goal.
- If the patient has been referred, ask the patient why they have
come: do not rely on a referral letter, but have the patient tell
you in their own words what they think is wrong with them, how this
is affecting them and what they expect to get out of the
consultation.
Elicit information:
- After the first 60 to 90 seconds of listening to the patient
without interruption, as necessary direct the discussion to elicit
relevant history.
- Discuss any previous treatments and their effectiveness
etc.
- Explore the effects of the illness or condition, and any
previous treatments, on the patient's life, taking account of
sociological factors such as effect on family and working
life.
- Reflect back this information to the patient to ensure you have
"got the story straight".
- Be attentive, respectful and empathetic.
Developing a treatment strategy:
- If you are unable to arrive at a diagnosis without further
investigation, inform the patient what you need to do to proceed
towards diagnosis.
- Explain why you need to do certain tests, conduct examinations
and what this will involve.
- Talk to the patient about their condition and its effects on
their body, and allow them to ask questions - indeed, encourage
them to ask questions about their illness or condition and how it
may or does affect their life and lifestyle.
- Discuss options for treatment (including not having treatment)
with the patient, taking account of what you have gleaned about
them and their lifestyle. Always remember that it is the patient's
treatment and thus their choice - your job is to provide expert
advice to assist the patient in their choice of treatment from the
available options.
- Provide written information and treatment instructions, as
patients will often not 'take in' or will forget many details,
particularly if they have been diagnosed with serious illness; if
necessary have a partner or relative in the consultation.
Concluding the encounter:
- Ensure the patient understands what has been agreed, what will
happen next and what they need to do, and if they have to come back
to see you or go and have a test done, explain how important this
is and how to go about it (e.g. how to get there, make a new
appointment).
- Ensure the patient feels they have finished for the day and
that they have no other concerns they wish to raise.
- Note the 'door knob moment'. It is not uncommon for patients to
say something important that is relevant to the consultation as
they have their hand on the door knob to leave the room. Doctors
can be busy typing their consultation notes and miss this important
patient statement.
- To clarify the patient's understanding: paraphrase - ask the
patient what would they tell their loved one about what has been
discussed? Practitioners who use this communication strategy will
often be surprised by what the patient has mistakenly processed as
a result of the consultation. This allows the opportunity for
clarification before the patient leaves the practice.
Managing the time
While it may appear that all these above steps will take up a
lot of time, how much you need to cover depends on if you are
seeing a new patient, a very familiar patient or someone you have
not seen for some time.
- For all new patients, allocate additional time through your
appointment system and do not permit additional patients to be
'fitted in' on new patient times.
- For patients with complex conditions, or patients whom you
haven't seen for a long time, consider allocating additional time
based on your experience with, and knowledge of, that patient.
- For other patients, a normal consultation time will generally
suffice, as much of the territory would have already been
covered.
- If patients raise several issues for you to deal with, it is
quite acceptable for you to prioritise the issues and ask the
patient to return on another day to deal with the less pressing
concerns. Otherwise, you may find a waiting room full of frustrated
patients when you finally emerge. If you have patient information
brochures, it is a good idea to spell out your approach so as to
manage patient expectations at the outset. If not, it is wise to
explain this to the patient during the consultation and come to an
agreement about how you intend to conduct the consultation.
By spending a little extra time to get to know your patients,
you will find your interactions with them to be more fulfilling, as
well as more useful from a clinical point of view. In addition, by
feeling more in control of how you manage your time, you will be
looking after yourself better and will derive greater satisfaction
in the long term from your chosen profession.