December 2020 Communication Tip

Ask-Tell-Ask

For the final communication tip of the year (thank god this year is coming to an end), I wanted to share a communication strategy to make sure, after all our good communication efforts, that patients and family actually understand what we were hoping to tell them.

It’s called “Ask-Tell-Ask.”

Three simple steps:

ASK for permission to talk about the subject (for example, “Is it ok to talk about your scan results now?”)

TELL what you have to tell.  That is, say what you have to say, but in just 1-2 sentences, simply, directly, avoiding jargon and acronyms.

ASK what your patient/family has heard. (for example, “I want to make sure I’ve explained this clearly.  Can you please tell me what you heard me say?”).  This is called the “teach back” method.

Try it and I guarantee you’ll be surprised at what people think you said!  What is clear for us may be very unclear or confusing to patients and their families. 

Even the parents of a doctor can completely mishear what you have to say…  When my own Dad had a parathyroid nodule a few years ago, the surgeon come out of the OR and told my waiting Mom, “It’s not cancer.” She them immediately called me crying, saying “The doctor said something about cancer!”

So before you finish communicating, make sure your listener heard what you said and understood what you meant.

Happy Holidays,

mike