Review of your consultation / communication skills
Welcome
- The patient is made to feel welcome
- The patient is encouraged to express their reasons for attendance
- Verbal and non-verbal cues are used
- Good eye contact demonstrated
Information gathering
- Displays organised listening and responds to cues with both open and closed questions
- Allows the patient to express reasons for attendance, including during a follow-up consultation
- Uses appropriate language with no jargon
- Any necessary examination is explained
- Explanation of management plan given
- Checks the understanding of the patient and agrees follow-up arrangements
Partnership
- Involves the patient in decision making
- Explores the patient’s wishes and views
- Gives the patient options
- Confirms patient’s agreement and understanding and reviews the plan
- Negotiates & delivers a plan based on doctor’s knowledge of patient’s views
Health Enablement (including Health Promotion)
- Increases self-awareness to improve health
- Establishes risk factors and risk taking behaviour and offers advice and action
- Explores health beliefs of patients
- Ensures the patient’s understanding and responsibility for health
- Uses motivational interviewing or reflection
Management Plan
- Uses information gathered to form agreed management plan
- The management plan is based on best evidence, is informed by doctor’s knowledge of the patient, and is medically necessary
- A range of options is given, an option agreed, and a plan for review is made (if appropriate)
Insight and Understanding
- Understands the consultation and has insight into own performance; for example, additional factors (such as social and family) are taken into account and the log reflects these
- Takes into account the past medical history, surgical history and the patient’s expectations
- Admits to knowledge gaps, and acts appropriately
Useful Reading on Consultation Skills
- David Pendelton, Theo Schofield, Peter Tate and Peter Havelock, The Consultation (An Approach to Learning and Teaching), Oxford General Practice Series 6
- Kurtz SM, Silverman JD, Draper J (2004). Teaching and Learning Communication Skills in Medicine (2nd ed) Radcliffe Publishing
- Peter Tate: The Doctor’s Communication Handbook (Third Edition), Radcliffe Medical Press
- Roger Neighbour: The Inner Consultation, (How to develop an effective and intuitive consulting style), Petroc Press
- Silverman JD, Kurtz SM, Draper J. Skills for Communicating with Patients (1998). Radcliffe Medical Press Ltd.
- A useful update on the Calgary - Cambridge approach to consultation skills (http://www.skillscascade.com)
This page was last updated on: 10/03/2022
