Reflective Account - Communication Essay

After further research I discovered that hearing aids are not as good as some people make them out to be, as the article why things suck: Hearing aids (2008), explains, that the problems are with the microphone, the processor and the battery of the hearing aids. The microphone, this article suggests that it picks up all sound coming from all directions, to a service user this could be come irritating, and confusing, if this is the case it will be hard for the user to focus in on the sounds they need to hear. In a health and social care setting this could become difficult if a hearing impaired person is in a hospital, they may find the professionals voice hard to hear while background noise is happening. If this was to happen the communication would not be effective, as the service user will not be able to hear all the information and therefore wouldn’t understand what was going on. This relates to argyle’s communication cycle, the cycle is made up of six stages: idea occurring, message

Communication eases anxiety of the patients and eliminates more possibilities for mistakes, and lets each party know what is expected of them it also helps the care worker to communicate and use their skills to meets the service user’s rights and needs. In a care home, there are elderly people who may have speech difficulties, be hard of hearing, but the care worker should not use the effective communication skills too much because if the care worker speaks to one of the elderly which has hearing difficulties he must ensure he does not speak to loud as the elderly person may feel intimidated and may feel that the care worker is

This assignment is a reflective account on communicating with a patient who cannot communicate verbally. To remain confidential I will call the patient, Patient A. I’m going to discuss the importance of non-verbal communication within a healthcare setting. Patient A was a 63 year old lady suffering from MND which resulted in her losing her speech.

Communication is very important in order to express needs and emotions. There are two types of communication, verbal and non-verbal, both of which are important in understanding and supporting someone.

As some peoples communication can change day to day due to medical or physical conditions you can help to identify the best methods to suit them by monitoring them and reporting what you find to your manager they can then put in place aids or different methods that will best suit the individual. Also they will be able to set up meetings with the appropriate people e.g. speech therapist.

Consider changes in the person’s communication needs. what did you do (record and report to who)

Communication is a process of transferring information from one person or from a group of people to the other. Communication can also be defined as a way and form of passing or receiving a message. People communicate to express or share a concern and allow the passing of message. By not communicating can limit the people’s ability to connect with each other. For instance care worker to care users and other professionals in the care setting environment. People communicate so that they can understand the needs of others and it ensures ways of building trust and resolving conflicts. Communication is a two way process that enables sharing of experience.

A range of factors can impact individuals with sensory loss, such as blind or partly sighted individuals struggle to read peoples facial expressions, which are important for communication. Also not realizing someone is talking to an individual if they are walking past or stood behind them can be frustrating. Written communication can also be problematic for partly sighted individuals. Larger font may help overcome these issues. People who are hard of hearing can also become frustrated as they can’t hear day to day noises such as the doorbell, telephone ring or people talking to them directly. This may make them feel with drawn from others and lonely.

During an initial assessment an individual’s ability and communication methods are established. This is done when an individual arrives into care. Everyone involved in the care of this service user is made aware of their needs and preferences regarding communication and any changes are recognised during reviews and shared with the team to ensure the individual’s needs are met.

Identifying communication needs: use of personal histories; involvement of the individual; involvement of family, friends and carers

2.3 You need as much information as possible about the individual's communication needs to ensure that their wishes and needs are met. Talk to the individual, their family/carers, other professionals involved in their care. If aids are needed (hearing aids, picture cards, pen and paper) make sure that these are available. If language is a barrier maybe learning a few words of their language would help. If their needs change you need to adapt to the changes. Using the internet, reading books, Journals, reports and reviews are good way of obtaining information providing you know what you need.

Communication is highly important, especially in an elderly care setting. It is useful in many different ways and situations, for example; if the service user had vision impairments, it is important that the professional speaks loud and clearly pronunciating properly however is not patronising in any way making the service user feel uncomfortable. This gets important information, such as changes to medication, across clearly to the service user without them feeling uncomfortable or unaware.

This essay is a reflective essay on my learning development from a young age through to my current position as a University Student. I will be relating my learning development back to two theories of human development, Vygotstsky’s socio-cultural theory and Marcia’s version of Erikson’s theory of identity development. I will identify and discuss the challenge I have faced with my identity and how this has impacted on my development.

Vital signs are a fundamental component of nursing care and indicate the body’s ability to maintain blood flow, regulate temperature and regulate oxygenate the body tissue. Taking vital signs are essential in revealing any sudden changes in the body, which could potentially indicate clinical deterioration of the patient.

This is a reflective essay based on a event which took place in a hospital setting. The aim of this essay is to explore how members of the Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) worked together and communicate with each other to achieve the best patients outcome.