Page 9 - 2021 Risk Reduction Series - Communication Part One

SVMIC Risk Reduction Series: Communication

PART ONE

Introduction

It goes without saying that communication is critically

important in healthcare. Patient care requires not only
frequent communication, but it must also be effective. This

means ensuring the intended message is conveyed and
received. If either the patient or healthcare provider lacks

clear understanding of the information conveyed, the delivery
of care is compromised. When the care is compromised and

leads to harm, a lawsuit may ensue. This course will review the
components of effective communication in a healthcare setting,

examine case examples where communications issues arose,
and propose solutions for improvement. We will discuss various

forms of communication, including electronic communication.

Electronic communication has revolutionized the medical
profession. The ability to exchange healthcare information
electronically and the utilization of electronic health records

(EHR) gives practitioners the opportunity to provide higher

quality and safer care for patients while creating measurable
benefits for their organization and practice. Electronic
communication allows providers the opportunity to better

manage care for their patients and offer better healthcare by

providing accurate and complete information about patients at
the point of care. It also enables safer, more reliable prescribing
and easier and more accurate diagnoses of patients while

promoting complete and legible documentation, as well as

streamlined coding and billing. Unfortunately, the technology
intended to make professional lives easier and provide better

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