Soft skills are qualities or personal characteristics that health workers develop to improve communication between patients and with other workers with whom they are related. Today, they are considered so vital that they can influence work development, performance, and even activities of daily life. Soft skills are essential for successful performance in any interpersonal setting. The main values that influence healthcare professionals are empathy, communication skills and teamwork, stress management, positive attitude, flexibility, time management, and trust. The development of these skills can make it create a more optimal work environment, and make other colleagues see an advantage to learn from them and grow as professionals.
Empathy
Empathy is the ability to (v) realize and appreciate how others feel and what (pn) they imply and the capacity to bear these emotions to other people. Empathy is multi-dimensional, involving emotional, cognitive, communicative, behavioral, and moral (aj) rational dimensions. In health care, (n) empathy is essential as it allows for an understanding of patients' and family needs and feelings, (pn) which helps to maximize the level of care provided to the (n) clients. Empathy also helps to (v) build trust, which is a (aj) significant factor in ensuring that the care provided is sensitive to the clients’ needs (Tulgan, 2015). Empathy towards colleagues in the healthcare setting helps to build (aj) strong relationships and collaborations among staff members, which increases productivity in the (n) workplace.
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A good example of empathy in the healthcare setting is (v) listening (av) carefully to (n) patients and getting empathetic of what is happening to them without (v) rushing to (aj) quick (n) judgment. (aj) Each (n) patient is different, and the more data (pn) we have about our patient will further aid in (v) unraveling what the matter is. For instance, when we (v) receive a (av) terminally ill patient in the emergency department, although (pn) it will not require (v) deploying a team for resuscitation , it will require interdisciplinary support. The (n) worker who leads the care will have a clear, (aj) sincere language and respect. The worker must have empathy with the family to feel the pain (pn) they have and the needs for spiritual relief, (v) manage the stress of the situation if no grief process has started with (pn) them, explain when palliative sedation is administered, and (av) ethically define what is best for the (n) patient.
Communication Skills
Healthcare (n) workers need to (v) talk to patients and (aj) their families in addition to routinely communicating with (aj) their (n) coworkers. Effective communication skills are (av) very important in (v) providing great patient care and improving patient satisfaction as well. Communication is a two-way process. First, (pn) they speak, and (pn) you (v) listen and then vice-versa. Listening helps identify and address the concerns of the patient. (pn) It will also be a big help in (v) making the appropriate diagnosis and (v) determine the best type of intervention for the patient. Listening to patients bears integrity for (aj) their self-knowledge and cultivates trust with the healthcare provider. (av) Thus, effective communication in the healthcare setting not only benefits the healthcare provider (av) but also and most notably, the patients.
An example is when (pn) you elicit the history of a patient. History taking comprises 90% of your diagnosis. It is essential to let the patient express himself or herself, relating it to the reason why he or she decided to see a healthcare provider (av) about it. (pn) It is also important that in (aj) your part as a healthcare (n) provider, you can ask the important questions to the patient relating to (aj) his or her problems. (av) In this way, you can build trust, and that will also help (pn) you as a caregiver to accurately diagnose the patient and give appropriate care. (n) Patients and their families often interact with (n) nurses during difficult times. When you are attentive to her medical needs and (aj) her emotions, her healing process starts. Formulating articulated, empathetic, and unbiased responses to patient questions and concerns is essential in nursing.
Stress Management
Stress management is a (aj) wide range of techniques and psychotherapies aimed at (v) monitoring an individual's stress level, (av) particularly chronic stress, (av) usually to improve daily (v) functioning. Research has revealed that a (aj) low amount of controllable stress will lead to augmented brain functioning, a strengthened immune system , and (av) well preparedness for impending (aj) stressful circumstances, (pn) which with the work and home life can have a positive effect on emotional health. There are several benefits obtained from reducing and controlling stress, starting with an (v) increase in concentration, a decrease in anxiety, and pain reduction. Managing stress successfully also leads to improved (n) wellbeing. Stress management programs are without the need for drugs. Stress management promotes constructive thinking, (pn) which in turn increases the health care provider's efficiency concerning making decisions on patient care.
For instance, a (n) nurse may encounter an emergency which may thwart (pn) them from showing up in the healthcare facility during their shift. The (n) nurse in duty may be asked to continue attending to (n) patients even after the individual's shift is completed. This can lead to a lot of mistakes that can wreak havoc the delivery of health care services because the specialist is (av) likely to get exhausted, and at this point, (pn) it may (v) exert pressure on this specialist due to a lot of work which will result to stress. (aj) Private (n) hospitals (v) implement therapy such as on-site massage services and discounted memberships in gymnastics, (pn) which help employees relieve stress. (av) Additionally, the hospital runs "Club," a wellness program that offers (n) photography, yoga, and other classes to reduce stress and promote work/life balance.
Teamwork
The importance of (n) teamwork soft skill in health care (v) lies in the fact that (pn) it leads to the establishment of good (n) communication between the different providers, (v) leading to effective collaboration and coordination. This leads to an (av) efficient implementation of (aj) evidence-based practice in the clinical context, which is the administration of the safest and most (aj) productive medical intervention, both in terms of diagnostics and treatment. The rate of medical errors declines, and thus, the patient outcome (v) improves in terms of holistic recovery (Maciej, 2020). Further, the soft skills can be used in conflict resolution, decision making, and (v) solving of problems, of healthcare
An example of how (pn) it may be (v) used in a (n) healthcare setting includes; conflict resolution. For example, in case of ethical dilemmas, such as while delivering the end of life care, in the case when the patient (v) is unconscious and not in a position to give (av) informed consent regarding the decision of withdrawing or not withdrawing the life support, and there is a conflict between the views of the provider and the immediate members of the family. Soft skills of (aj) good communication can be used to resolve this conflict by referring to the advance directive of the (n) patient. Thus, (pn) it leads to ethical decision making (av) based on the moral, ethical principles of autonomy and resolution of the conflict in an ethical way. From this example, (pn) we can see that the health care (n) providers, instead of arguing about discontinuing medication on the patient, (pn) they decided to use teamwork and (aj) effective communication used.
Positive Attitude
A (aj) positive (n) attitude enables the health care provider to (v) avoid (n) worries as well as (av) negative (v) thinking when (v) dealing with (n) patients -Positive attitude is all about focusing on the (aj) good side of things. In a health care setting, there are patients with different types of (n) illnesses , which can (v) create (aj) stressful situations. With a (aj) positive attitude, a health care provider can focus on the good side by, for example, (v) appreciating the (aj) small progress made by the patients instead of the (aj) long (n) hours of work (pn) he or (pn) she has to (v) monitor the (n) patients (av) constantly. (pn) It guarantees patient satisfaction. As a health care provider, it is (adv) quite easy to transfer the energy one feels to the patient. A health care provider with a (aj) positive attitude is (av) constantly (v) encouraging a patient and (v) motivating them to take charge of their health which leads to better health outcomes, and hence patient satisfaction
An example is when a (n) nurse is taking care of a patient diagnosed with asthma . The patient tells the nurse that (pn) she feels (pn) she is not going to make it and wants to (v) discontinue the treatment as she feels (pn) it is of no use. The nurse (v) takes a long pause and (v) starts telling the patient about a patient (pn) she had been taking care of that had also been diagnosed with asthma was (v) discharged (av) last week after a substantial improvement in his health. After the (aj) lengthy (n) conversation, the patient seems more relieved and informs the nurse that (pn) she will continue with the treatment and also collaborate better with the nurse as her hope of getting well is (av) now renewed.
Time Management
Time management (v) is among the essential (aj) soft skills required in the healthcare industry (Nayak, 2018). For (aj) healthcare (n) professionals to maintain a professional (n) environment when interacting with (n) colleagues and (n) patients, and to (av) fruitfully tackle position responsibilities, (pn) they must show competency in (aj)time management (n) skills. Being capable of (av) effectively executing (aj) several tasks (av) simultaneously and to priorities, the everyday workload is crucial for all positions. Furthermore, healthcare workers must (v) manage and (av) promptly reprioritize (pn) their assignments due to medical emergencies, last-minute scheduling adjustments, and or (aj) ever-dynamic organizational needs. In a healthcare setting, one will be dragged in multiple directions at work, so they must know how to prioritize and (v) classify urgent matters.
There (v) are so many benefits that come along with (v) practicing time management in the nursing practice. For example, effective time management enables nurses to get more work done, provide fewer missed deadlines, and produce a higher work quality. In the long run, effective time management is essential to (av) successfully progressing and performing as a nurse. To improve on time management, specific strategies to be considered include prioritization, organization, and delegation (Maryniak, 2019). Organization entails developing a plan for the activities that need to be done. As with prioritization, (pn) it is vital to view activities in terms of their urgency and importance. In this case, clinical decision-making and critical thinking come in handy. Delegating tasks appropriately and following up on the delegated tasks aid in effectively managing time. (pn) Those last-minute assignments or schedule changes. As nurses, (pn) we must be able to quickly adapt, prioritize, organize, and manage these changes. Having great organization and time management skills will lessen (pn) those burdens.
Trust
The ( aj) soft (n) skill of (n) trust (v) enables the health care provider to (v) establish a (aj) good ( n) relationship with the (n) patient, which (v) gives the patient the ( v) confidence to (v) open up and ( v) talk ( av) honestly to the health care provider. This is ( av) very ( aj) important in achieving the desired health outcomes. It also (v) guarantees security to the ( n) patient. A health care provider ( v) instills trust in the patient as ( pn) they feel (pn) they can ( v) rely on the health care provider to ( v) engage in actions that are of the patient's interest. Health care, in general, involves an element of ( n) risk and ( n) uncertainty and establishing trust between the health care provider and the patient making the latter have more faith in the ( n) competence as well as the intentions of the health care provider.
An example of how a trust may be used in a healthcare setting. In a health care setting, ( pn) we have patients that have a specific liking for particular health care providers for reasons such as ( pn) they feel like the particular health care provider ( v) understands them ( av) better or is (av) easier to work with than other health care providers. This is because the patient has been able to (v) establish trust with that particular provider. Therefore, when administering (n) medication or (n) treatment to that patient, the health care facility should ( v) assign that particular health care provider to treat the patient as (pn) they are likely to ( v) collaborate ( av) better. The healthcare profession is (aj) patient-oriented. (pn) It ( v) requires the healthcare provider to project confidence to the patient. Trust is one of the most ( aj) influential factors that affect ( n) performance in a health care setting.
Flexibility
For starters, (n) flexibility (v) enables healthcare (n) professionals to (v) build a (aj) strong (n) network and also to (v) establish a good working (n) environment among (n) colleagues. This is because when someone is (aj) flexible, (pn) they can (v) adapt to the changes taking place; hence (aj) smooth transition is made without a lot of hiccups. Flexibility also enables you to ( v) understand ( pn )yourself as a person and helps ( pn )you work on (pn) your self-management. For one to be flexible, ( n) they have to be ready for any kind of change that may arise, and this helps someone to ( v) manage their time as well as ( pn) themselves.
Take, for example, a colleague has ( av) suddenly fallen ill and will not be able to (v) arrive for ( pn) her shift, and hence you are asked to take over the shift even though you have (av) already done yours. For this kind of arrangement to work, you must be flexible. This is because a (aj) rigid person would not be able to ( v) accommodate the (av) sudden change that has occurred. This might lead to friction among colleagues, as you may (v) blame your colleague for forcing you to take on an extra shift. Therefore, it is ( aj) important to ( v) understand that flexibility at the workplace, (av) especially the healthcare system, is a ( aj) necessary skill that enables one to move with the trends in the job market and also fosters good relationships among colleagues. Flexibility is a (aj) significant soft skill because most of the careers I healthcare do not conform to the ( av) usual period of 9 to 5 hours. (pn) It not only promotes teamwork but also collaboration and coordination in the healthcare setting.
Conclusion
In the modern competitive society, soft skills are very important in the health professional. As personal attributes, soft skills enable a person to interact harmoniously and effectively with other people. It suffices to conclude that soft skills are significant in healthcare, where healthcare workers such as nurses interact more closely with teams and patients under emotional and difficult circumstances. Some of the most important soft skills vital in health care include communication, time management, stress management, positive attitude, trust, empathy, flexibility, and teamwork. Several benefits accrue from having these soft skills. Possession of these virtues not only enables nurses to concentrate on their work but also to increase accuracy, output, success, and establish a conducive work environment.
References
Maciej Duszynski, 2020. Teamwork Skills: Definition, Examples, Best for Your Resume, https://zety.com/blog/teamwork-skills
Maryniak, K. (2019). Time management for nurses. Retrieved from https://www.rn.com/featured-stories/time-management/
Nayak, S. G. (2018). Time Management in Nursing-Hour of need. International Journal of Caring Sciences , 11 (3), 1997-2000
Oberg, D., & Villemaire, L. (2017). Grammar and Writing Skills for the Health Professional (3rd ed.). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.
Tulgan, B. (2015). Unlocking the power of soft skills. Professional Safety , 60 (12), 24.
