Clinical Question/Topic: In adults 20 years and older with poor attendance in an outpatient psychiatric clinic (P), How does improving therapeutic communication (I), compared to no communication ©, increase patient compliance to outpatient treatment (T) over 6 months period?
From the question, we know that poor attention in an outpatient psychiatric clinic occurs as a direct outcome of non-effective therapeutic communication. The link between poor attendance and therapeutic communication can be seen from the assertion made within the question pointing to the intended intervention to improve patient compliance to outpatient treatment, which is to maximizing on therapeutic communication. The question suggests that patient compliance to outpatient treatment is determined solely by whether or not the expected levels of therapeutic communication is achieved. Therapeutic communication creates a front through which health providers are able to learn more about their patients while giving the patients an avenue through which to express themselves (Schwind, McCay, Metersky, & Martin, 2016). It is from this point of view that the question seeks to examine the value placed on improving therapeutic communication with the intention being towards ensuring that the compliance to outpatient treatment among patients would also improve.
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The main aspect that needs to be studies with regard to poor attendance related to therapeutic communication is whether an improvement in therapeutic communication may lead to an improvement in compliance to outpatient treatment. Therapeutic communication is likely to improve compliance to outpatient treatment, as it gives patients a high level of confidence with regard to the treatment provided to achieve best possible health outcomes (Boselli, Demaille, Fuchs, & Manseur, 2018). The question reflects on a study within which the researcher(s) engaged in an experiment that seeks to determine whether any improvements in therapeutic communication may have a direct impact towards improving attendance. The researcher(s) will need to compare the results from this study to results from another experiment where there is no communication between the clinic and the patients to determine how this impacts the patients’ decision to attend the clinic. From this outcome, it will be much easier for the researcher(s) to determine whether indeed compliance to outpatient treatment comes as a direct outcome of therapeutic communication.
The main approach that can be taken today to enhance poor attendance related to therapeutic communication is to adopt a quality improvement approach within which the overall levels of therapeutic communication are improved gradually. Therapeutic communication is seen as an effective approach through which to engage patients on a one-on-one process aimed at advancing interaction with the aim being towards promoting the patients’ physical and emotional well-being (Arnold & Boggs, 2019). The health team involved may be expected to come up with a strategic approach through which to engage individual patients at a much more personal level. Through such engagements and interactions, it becomes much easier to identify some of the key factors that are likely to affect their compliance to outpatient treatment. The projected outcome is that this will aid in the establishment of a rather effective outcome towards dealing with the issue of poor attendance.
The first step to administer the change would involve having to ensure that each of the health professionals involved in handling the patients is well aware of how to engage in therapeutic communication. That would involve ensuring that the professionals are taken through training and development on this type of communication. Training of health professionals on therapeutic communication is essential towards advancing their ability to capitalize on its use as a way of interacting with the patients (Fan & Taylor, 2016). The second step would involve assigning the professionals to individual patients with whom they would be expected to engage and interact to achieve overall effectiveness in therapeutic communication.
References
Arnold, E. C., & Boggs, K. U. (2019). Interpersonal Relationships E-Book: Professional Communication Skills for Nurses . Elsevier Health Sciences.
Boselli, E., Demaille, N., Fuchs, G., & Manseur, A. (2018). Assessment of the therapeutic communication in order to improve the welcoming of patients in the operating room: impact study. Canadian journal of anaesthesia= Journal canadien d'anesthesie , 65 (10), 1138-1146.
Fan, C. W., & Taylor, R. R. (2016). Assessing therapeutic communication during rehabilitation: The Clinical Assessment of Modes. American Journal of Occupational Therapy , 70 (4), 7004280010p1-7004280010p10.
Schwind, J. K., McCay, E., Metersky, K., & Martin, J. (2016). Development and implementation of an advanced therapeutic communication course: An interprofessional collaboration. Journal of Nursing Education , 55 (10), 592-597.
