More handpicked essays just for you.
Importance of effective communication skills in healthcare
Importance of effective communication skills in healthcare
Importance of effective communication skills in healthcare
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Akilah, your post was very informative and provided a viewpoint about the medical field that personally I would have never considered. In your discipline, as a physician assistant places you in the middle between the patient and Physician. This seems to require you to have the ability to communicate with the patient and the Physician; I know that there is a professional voice or expectation that Physicians expect you to possess, but you also must be able to communicate with the patients in an effective way. Balance seems an appropriate term that is required even more so in your chosen profession; the ability to understand and use the medical terminology when working with your colleagues is essential. However, when dealing with your patients
The physician assistant is a team player in the medical world, working daily with surgeons, physicians, therapists, and many other health care professionals. Similar to the job description of physicians, PAs see patients, take medical histories, preform physical exams, make diagnoses, order and interpret tests, and develop treatment plans (Ludwig). A physician assistant, nowadays, may even perform procedures that were once performed exclusively by physicians. Because every PA must have a supervising physician who oversees their work, it is assumed by many that PAs are “assistants to doctors”, however, that is not the case because a vast majority of PAs work independently. The extent of supervision by a physician varies depending on location and branch of medicine. Although, a physician assistant may carry out much of the same roles as a physician would, the amount of schooling required to become a PA is nearly half as many as that of a physician. Physician assistant programs nationwide require an undergraduate degree in one of many sciences, such as biology, and certain
I am interested in pursuing the Physician Assistant (PA) degree because of my experiences both within the medical field and as a patient. These experiences have led me to believe that a team approach to patient-centered medicine provides the best and most comprehensive care possible. Further, the PA profession offers me the opportunity to continue my lifelong passion of helping others, giving back to my community, and provides me with further opportunities to teach.
The medical field is among the largest and ever growing career fields, especially when dealing with Physician Assistants (PAs) and Nurse Practitioners (NPs). In the 1960’s when the physician shortage began, the medical field created the PA and NP positions to fill in the gaps (Curren, 2007, p. 404). This matter has opened up numerous questions as more and more PAs and NPs begin practicing, especially concerning their education level. Many patients are concerned that they will not get the proper care. PAs/NPs are beneficial to everyday life by providing patients with the necessary skills needed to successfully treat them.
Fortunately, I was able to come to United States (U.S.) through U.S. Diversity Visa criteria and move along with my dreams. Even though there were cultural and linguistic challenges in U.S., I decided to find a common ground and move ahead. As “Man’s best successes comes after their disappointments", my first encounter with physician assistant (PA) was when I suffered from Anemia and got admitted to emergency. During my hospital stay, she explained and answered my questions regarding my health conditions, preventions, reasons, causes and effects along with precautions and kept me informed all the time. She was very passionate, patience and devoted while dealing with me. And I realized that PA is not only a profession, but it is also a way to serve community and get satisfaction through services. Her impression was tipping point in shaping my career choice. However, the path from that point onward till now has not been easy.
In healthcare one of the major obstacles employees attempt to overcome is the communication gap. The outpatient clinics in particular find it challenging to keep in contact with the hospital. In the healthcare market to have success you must have communication. Romano observed that hospitals are branching out; outpatient setting offer lucrative services that are rendered in a well-situated environment (2006). The outpatient sector is where the profit is made; this is clearly the way of the future. If prospective clinics are to fulfill patient and employees needs, a communication policy must be put into practice. By employing a communication strategy employees will be more productive, more informed, and administration could expect to see enhanced customer service.
Lastly, Medical assistants are of great help to the physicians they work for. They make it possible for the practitioners to be effective in their practice. Just like all the other practitioners in the medical field, the medical assistants are expected to maintain high standards in the field. For the medical assistants this will include acting on the instructions given by the practitioners and adhering to the code of ethics as set by AAMA. The medical assistants are also expected to make sound decisions when faced with medical dilemmas. All this should be focused on giving the patient quality care.
Being a medical assistant is not an easy job; it requires mentally and physically functions. According to the Medical Assisting and Administrative and Clinical Competencies seventh edition, to become a successful medical assistant I have to obtain specific knowledge base, skills, and prove precise behaviors such as professional characteristics. The medical assistant is an intermediary between the doctor and the patient so the ability to think critically, analyze and communication is very important. Furthermore, it explains that the general skills of the medical assistant can be divided in...
The healthcare field is a large organization filled with individuals that work towards the common goal of helping others. In the past several years’ health care organization have focused their attention in improving healthcare as a whole by focusing on factors such as access to primary care, control cost, increase efficiency and improve outcomes. A growing trend in trying to meet these challenges has been the use of physician assistants. According to Assistant, physician (PA). (n.d.). Retrieved September 30, 2015, from http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=8593 a physician assistant is a mid-level medical practitioner who works under the supervision of a licensed physician. Their education qualifies them to examine patients,
I know that by doing my job, no matter how different each patient may be, that I have made a difference in someone’s life. I am very content in my job knowing that there is an increasing need in healthcare. With the demand of healthcare today, there will always be a demand for physicians, and with the need of physicians there will always be a need for medical assistants. In this profession the rewards and opportunities will only continue to grow, and there is not a better place to than here in America, because like Ralph Waldo Emerson (journalist, poet, philosopher, and essayist) once said, “America is another name for
Physician Assistant is a career choice that entails various specialties and flexibilities that attracts many. Those who desires a path to practice medicine as soon as possible, PA 's lateral mobility allows that to happen. Compared to medical school, PA school requires less time and amount less debt. As the population grows and chronic diseases spreads, The future projection of PA is growing faster than the average careers.
Physician assistants (PAs) do many tasks and work in various medically influenced settings. PAs can prescribe medications but may need a physician’s opinion beforehand. They may give treatment in the care of broken bones and administer immunizations. A PA also has to educate patients and family members on how to care for a condition that affects them or the members of their families, such as an asthmatic child (“Physician Assistants.” U.S.). Giving lab tests and taking blood samples are also a part of a PAs job duties. They must record the medical history of the patient. A PA may assist a physician/surgeon in a surgery (“Physician Assistant.” Encyclopedia 14).
“Communication is the heart of nursing… your ability to use your growing knowledge and yourself as an instrument of care and caring and compassion” (Koerner, 2010, as cited in Balzer-Riley, 2012, p. 2). The knowledge base which Koerner is referring to includes important concepts such as communication, assertiveness, responsibility and caring (Balzer-Riley, 2012). Furthermore, communication is complex. It includes communication with patients, patient families, doctors, co-workers, nurse managers and many others. Due to those concepts and the variety of people involved, barriers and issues are present. Knowing how to communicate efficiently can be difficult.
two or more people; this is something that we do all the time. It is
As a result, I always felt that I am actively participating in patients’ care. She allowed me to perform patient examinations most of the time and encouraged me to build up a good rapport with the patients. I think my past experience and medical knowledge was helped me lot during the history taking because I was able to go through history taking in a systematic manner and at the same time I could think of possible differential diagnosis. Furthermore, working in a medical clinic as a physician assistant also helped me a lot because one of the responsibilities delegated to me is taking patients history, however, this time it was different that I had to work out and actively think about a possible cause for patient concerns. The weakness I observe during history taking was sometimes I am little quick that might hurt the doctor-patient relationship, So, I am planning to improve my listening skill with less interruption to patients, I believe that might help the patient to express their concerns freely. Also, I am determined to listen to patients concerns in a non- judgemental manner to get the unbiased clinical
For example, both administrative and clinical medical assistants have to practice patient confidentiality, respect, sympathy, courtesy, friendliness, as well as helping out in their community and informing their patients. Medical assistants should also be well aware of a patient’s rights that are established by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) to promote excellent health care services. The patient has many rights, such as the right to medical care- meaning the patient has the right to receive high quality care and treatment but may also deny such treatment, respectful treatment, privacy, confidentiality, identity- a patient has the right to know the name and credibility of their healthcare provider, explanation of care- the patient has the right to be informed of their diagnosis and their treatment, informed consent, and a safe environment. Along with all of this, a medical assistant should have good communication skill, especially if seeking a job as an administrative medical assistant, and be able to work well under stressful situations and with various different people. In other words, a medical assistant needs to have the basics of these characteristics in order to prevail in their work