Norman Morrow

Pharmacists' evaluation of key communication skills in practice.

This paper reports the results of a major research initiative into the identification of key communication skills in community pharmacist-patient consultations. It is now widely accepted that the quality of practitioner-patient communication is fundamental to effective health care. However, an analysis of the literature pertaining to the communication issues facing health professionals in general and pharmacists in particular emphasised the need for more empirical research, to chart what pharmacists themselves deemed to be the nature and range of skills which contribute to effective communication performance in community pharmacy practice. The main aim of this research investigation was, therefore, to identify what constituted effective communicative performance by community pharmacists. This paper provides full details of the repertoire of skills and sub-skills identified as being the core communicative elements of practice. The results of this research will have relevance for health professionals and behavioural scientists, and will also contribute to the assurance of quality within the field of community pharmacy practice.

“Why do you ask?” A study of questioning behaviour in community pharmacist‐client consultations

This article reports the results of an analysis of recorded community pharmacist‐client interactions. The results showed that 98 per cent of all pharmacist questions asked were closed, over two thirds of which were of the Yes/No variety. Twenty four per cent were leading in nature and almost all of these were subtle leads. Pharmacists asked, on average, four questions per consultation as compared with a mean of 2.5 for clients. Only 2 per cent of all pharmacist questions addressed the psychosocial dimensions of practice, the vast majority being concerned with purely clinical matters. The findings are discussed within the context of a communication audit approach to community pharmacy practice, directed to effecting improvements in the quality of interviewing performance in pharmacist‐client consultations.

Using Videotape in Communication Skills Training: A critical evaluation of the process of self-viewing

The widespread availability of closed circuit television (CCTV) facilities has resulted in an increased use of the video-recorder as a method of providing feedback to trainees during programmes of communication skills training (CST). However, trainees in CST need to be aware that video feedback has both positive and negative effects upon individuals undergoing the process of self-viewing. This paper examines a range of issues associated with the use of the video-recorder during CST, and highlights the advantages and disadvantages of this feedback mechanism. It also provides some important recommendations for trainers, in order to overcome any negative effects which may accrue from video feedback.

Patient counselling: an investigation of core situations and difficulties in pharmacy practice

Within the past five years there has been a growth of interest in the application of communication skills training (CST) programmes to pharmacy. The content of these programmes has been based primarily on research carried out in other health professions. There is a clear need for similar research to be set in the context of pharmacy so that the content of CST programmes can be shown to be directly relevant and applicable to practice needs. The purpose of this investigation was to ascertain from pharmacists their perceptions of the range of situations and difficulties that were most relevant to patient counselling. The situation which was regarded as being most prevalent was that of dealing with confusion over medication, with the second being that of medication problems in the elderly. The two most frequently mentioned counselling difficulties were having sufficient time to deal with patients and ensuring patient understanding. The findings are discussed within the context of the design and content of CST programmes, and the wider application of the behavioural and social sciences to the practice of pharmacy.

Communication as a Focus in the Continuing Education of Pharmacists

This paper describes some of the problems of pharmaceutical continuing education, and examines the needs of pharmacists in relation to on-going education and training. Communication skills training is identified as a specific need to be addressed in both undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. Among the reasons for this are, the evolution of the clinical pharmacy movement, profession review, the legitimate claims of the behavioural sciences for inclusion in pharmacy curricula, and the findings of research into Patient-practitioner communication. To address the interpersonal dimension of pharmacy practice, 4 communication skills training course has been introduced in Northern Ireland as part of a systematic continuing education programme for community and hospital pharmacists. The nature, content and function of this course is described, and the importance of such education and training analysed in the context of the changing roles of both hospital and community pharmacist practitioners. Recommendations...

The Effectiveness of Microtraining in Developing Pharmacists Communication Skills: A study of personality and attitudes

This paper examines the effectiveness of a microtraining programme in developing the communication skills of pharmacists. In particular, it investigates the influence of this programme upon self-reported communication activities in the actual work environment. Inter-relationships are also obtained between the personality of participants, their attitude to the microtraining technique and the degree of self-reported influence on work performance. Overall, participants demonstrated a strongly positive attitude to, and indicated that they had been highly influenced by, the microtraining programme. It was also found that there was a significant and positive correlation between extroversion and attitude to microtraining (p less than 0.005). Furthermore, a positive correlation was also obtained between attitude and influence although this did not reach the 0.5 level of significance. It is concluded that microtraining is a promising technique for developing the communicative competence of pharmacists, but may need to be modified to cater for personality differences within trainees.

Health education perspectives in continuing education programmes for pharmacists

THIS paper describes the design and evaluation of a continuing education programme for pharmacists related to health education and traces the subse quent development of the programme. While the majority of participants agreed that the provision of health education should form part of the community pharmacists commitment, appropriate education and training was identified as a primary requirement in preparing pharmacists to fulfil this role. The wider implications of this finding are discussed.

Influencing and persuading skills at the interprofessional interface: Training for action

&NA; At the practitioner‐practitioner interface, the concepts of teamwork and interprofessional collaboration are of increasing importance. This emphasis has incumbent demands and challenges, not least of which is the necessity to negotiate ones own needs, roles, and responsibilities within the context of optimal patient care. Being able to influence others and persuade them to accept ones point of view will thus be at the heart of effective interprofessional communication. Against this background, this paper presents a description of a communication skills training (CST) course for pharmacists targeting the area of influencing and persuading skills. Starting with a brief overview of the content of the course, where nine specific influencing strategies are elaborated, the article goes on to describe the key instructional techniques used, incorporating both pedagogic and andragogic models of education. Program evaluation is reported through analysis of a postcourse questionnaire designed to assess the perceived effects of the training on participants. Against the stated criteria, the course achieved an overall 86% score. Use of the relationship and logical argument strategies scored highest in terms of skill use outcome, matched by the ability to recognize influence attempts made by others. Conversely, the “negative” influencing techniques of threat/fear and aversive stimulation scored lowest. The implications of these results are discussed together with the advantages and disadvantages of experiential training, with recommendations made as to how this type of training can be optimized.

Analytical and practical considerations of illustrative model video-tapes

This paper examines a number of issues pertaining to the design, preparation and production of model video-tapes for use during communication skills training programmes. The various sources from which such video-tapes can be obtained are outlined and different methods of using them while training are reviewed. The process of modelling per se is discussed and related to a range of considerations for ensuring optimum learning from taped models. Finally, detailed advice and guidance is provided for trainers wishing to produce their own model video-tapes.

Evaluation of a presentation skills course for pharmacists

As the role of the pharmacist develops, expands and changes, it is crucial that those involved in the provision of education and training programmes address areas of current need. One such area is that of delivering presentations to groups, since this is a task which pharmacists are increasingly expected to perform. This paper describes a communication skills training (CST) course for pharmacists, targeting on the area of presentation skills. Starting with a brief overview of the content of the course, where five specific presentation strategies are elaborated, the article goes on to describe the key instructional techniques used. Programme evaluation was through analysis of a post‐course questionnaire designed to assess the perceived effects of the training on participants. Against the stated criteria the course achieved an overall 85 per cent score. Strategies for introducing, structuring and concluding a presentation, and for defining new terms scored highest in terms of skill use outcome whereas techniques for engaging audience participation obtained the lowest scores. The implications of these results are discussed, together with recommendations as to how this type of training can be optimised.