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Interpersonal Communication
One of the requirements for being a good veterinary technician is good communication skills. In Lehman’s terms communication is the process by which a message is passed from the sender to the receiver with the intent of passing on comprehensible information. There is, therefore, two part of the communication process. Let us take for instance in a conversation. One party talks while the other listens keenly to ensure that the message is clearly understood to give a correct or appropriate response. In the area of veterinary care, these professionals are required to be good listeners.
Listening is a good communication skill. If one can master the art of listening attentively, then they can save on the amount of words needed to respond to the already said words (Burnard, 2013). Therefore, veterinary technicians are supposed to be good listeners to the point that they know what to do according to the account given by a patient or advice and insight from a colleague.
Hence, this paper will intently discuss the characteristics of a good listener and on how to become one in interpersonal communication. Good listening skills are learned from day to day. They need a lot of practice and effort for one to adapt to being a good listener.
Interpersonal Communication
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A good listener does not interrupt the patient or the other person speaking. When engaged in a conversation a good listener would sit back and wait for the other person to finish their statements. Then they will think about what they are going to say and say it in the appropriate manner. Otherwise, a good listener will only interrupt the other person if there is a significant point that needs clarification. That is only when he or she is supposed to interrupt when the other person is talking.
For in the case of a veterinary technician. When a patient comes in with a particular issue that needs to be taken care of. The veterinary technician ought to first present himself or herself in a professional manner. Greet, the patient, then get to the business of the day. The business of the day being that the patient will be asked in a courteous manner what bring them to the hospital.
After this inquiry, the veterinary technician will have in his hands a patient file if the patient is not a new one. In the case of a new patient, the details would have already been entered by the nurse for the doctor in a patient file. The patient file serves one important purpose. The medical history of the patient often helps the doctor predict or depict what the patient is suffering from. The information in the file is very significant. The patient might have recurring signs and symptoms thus the file may help decode what is ailing the patient.
Interpersonal Communication
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As the veterinary technician is conversing with the patient to get some relevant information. It is quite necessary to take down notes of what the patient is saying. The signs do not necessarily include all that the patient says but only the major or significant points regarding the matter at hand. Therefore, note taking is one of the practices a good listener performs. The practice is also paramount in the health care provision sector where information from the patient is treated like a goldmine.
The reason being what the patient says will be very helpful in ensuring the delivery of the appropriate health care. The same also applies to the colleagues of the veterinary technician. The partner may be holding information pertaining the case at hand at the moment. Therefore, any information should be treated as important unless it is proved to be wrong information.
Apart from the verbal cues that help the veterinary technician be able to know what is ailing the patient. There are some non-verbal cues that help one get as much information as necessary from a person in this case the patient. There reaches some point in a conversation that the one speaking does not get the right words to explain what he or she is meaning.
In this case, it might be very misleading if the point is not presented as it is supposed to be. The non-verbal cues come to help in this type of situation. A good listener can look at the person speaking and from their body language be able to tell what the person is trying to say.
Interpersonal Communication
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For instance, when a given patient has not been able to describe fully a certain feeling. Then the veterinary technician can be able to act in a certain way to help the patient vividly explain what he or she is feeling. This would be aided by good listening skills. The fact that the veterinary technician has not been able to get effectively what the patient was saying has enabled the use of non-verbal cues which mostly involve the body language to ensure the meaning or a given point is not lost in the conversation. This way some significant information about the medical issue at hand can be treated using the right information. Thus, the provision of the right medical treatment is guaranteed to be a reality.
The practices mentioned above can be very critical in some situations. For example, when the veterinary technician is starting a given surgical procedure. For his or her to know whether the anesthesia is working. He or she will communicate with the patient verbally but expect a response in the form of non-verbal cues to continue with the procedure. Hence, the importance of listening as a communication skill is very crucial to such professions or professions of related nature. Therefore, listening is a core skill in the communication skills that ought to be held by the veterinary technicians.
Interpersonal Communication
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The importance of listening can be summarized in a few sentences. By being a good listener, the technician can build a trustful relationship with the patient. The patient sees they are cared for and thus they will trust a certain health care professional just because of their good listening skills. Another significant use of good listening skills is to collect and give information. In this instance, a vet can collect the needed information from the patient to be able to treat the situation with that patient as it deserves to be treated. Therefore, good listening skills are an important part of the professional qualities of the veterinary technician.
Interpersonal Communication
References
Austin, D. R. (2013). Therapeutic recreation. Urbana, 51, 61801.
Brownell, J. (2015). Listening: Attitudes, principles, and skills. Routledge.
Burnard, P. (2013). Acquiring Interpersonal Skills: A handbook of experiential learning for health professionals. Springer.
Graham, S. (2011). Self-efficacy and academic listening. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 10(2), 113-117.
Interpersonal Communication
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