Effective Communication Skills Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Effective Communication Skills - Essay ExampleEffective dialogue skills are thus necessary to provide impelling services in health care. Paul Leagans defines communication as the process by which two or more people exchange facts, ideas, impressions and feelings so that each person gains understanding of use, intent and meaning of the message (Schuster, 1999). Communication includes verbal as well as non-verbal exchange of information. It is necessary to practice effective communication skills in nursing so as to understand, empathize and support patients (Carrol and Dolly, 2008). This penning will elaborate on two elements of effective communication and the skills pertinent to these elements. It is life-and-death to develop effective communication skills so as to overcome the various barriers to communication. In nursing practice, barriers to communication include physiological, personal, cultural, psychological and forcible barriers. Physiological barriers, for example, chang e mental state whitethorn interfere with the patients aptitude to interpret information. The nurses attitude, knowledge and feeling towards a patient may also impede communication. Physical barriers include noise, distance and other environmental factors that may impede communication (Schuster, 1999). The elements of effective communication include the sender, message, channel of communication, murderer and feedback (Schuster, 1999). The sender (source) formulates programs and broadcasts the information, which they want to communicate. The effect of the message is dependent on the senders attitude, knowledge, social status and communication skills. The message is the information in physical form conveyed to the reference. The channel of communication is the media used by the source in facilitating communication to the receiver. The receiver decodes, translates the meaning and acts upon the information received. Feedback is the reaction to the information conveyed by the sender. T his paper will focus on the message and the channel and the skills therein. There are various forms of message. They include words, signs, symbols and pictures. It comprises of message code, content and treatment (Schuster, 1999). Message code defines each form of signs and symbols that are structured in a meaningful format to the same people. This includes the use of language to convey information. Message content defines the material that is in the message. This is selected by the sender in putting across his information. On the other hand, message treatment shows the decisions which the source undertakes to select and arrange the codes and content. The message communicates the senders feelings, intentions and attitudes towards the audience (Balzer, 2007). In nursing practice, information is conveyed from one person to another within a short time. Effective communication skills are necessary to cancel errors in vital information, for example, treatment of a patient (Balzer, 2007 ). In effective communication, a message should elicit the desired action from the audience. It must be clear, timely, particularised and in line with the intended objectives. This means that the nurse should ensure that the message is brief, accurate and meets the objectives of its purpose. In addition, the message should be conveyed in a language that the audience can understand. The use of complex vocabulary to explain the patients disease and treatment will interfere on the patients ability to understand as well as accept their condition. Nursing practice also involves gathering information about the patient, symptoms and their effects to the patient. The use of a commons language will enhance understanding between the patient and the nurse (Christie and Robinson,