Seeking Understanding and Listening in Telehealth (Nursing)

00:01 Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings, thoughts, and experiences of another person.

00:08 When we are checking for understanding.

00:10 We're checking with the facts and the feelings.

00:13 You could interpret the facts of a situation correctly, but not the feelings and vice versa.

00:21 For example, you could have a patient that is scared because they are about to have a surgery.

00:28 You might interpret this fear because of the physical risk of the surgery.

00:33 In reality, the patient is scared because they don't know how long the recovery time is.

00:39 And they don't know how long they will be out of work.

00:42 And if they will be able to still do things necessary to care for their family.

00:47 This is a very different conversation than a fear of physical risk.

00:53 Let's say that your patient is concerned about the fiscal risk, but they are not afraid.

01:00 They are unsure and nervous.

01:03 What exactly are the risks? What does the surgery really entail? As you seek understanding of the facts and feelings of your patient, seek understanding to better connect and guide your patients.

01:20 In telehealth, you may be physically distant.

01:24 So the power of empathy, understanding the facts and feelings becomes even more critical in establishing a strong patient provider relationship.

01:33 Same as every medium of health care.

01:35 Your telehealth goal is to create a safe and supportive virtual environment where patients feel heard, valued, and cared for.

01:44 Despite the geographical separation.

01:47 Let's talk about some challenges you may face in understanding your patient.

01:52 In telehealth, nonverbal cues may be less apparent or distorted due to video quality or camera positioning.

02:01 However, they remain crucial engaging patients emotional states and providing empathetic care.

02:09 As you seek to recognize emotional and nonverbal cues, be mindful of facial expressions and tone of voice to represent emotions such as signs of distress, anxiety, understanding, and questioning or discomfort.

02:27 Also, consider body language.

02:31 Yes, telehealth will likely have a limited or distorted view of the entire person's body.

02:38 So try to observe things like posture, leaning into or far back from the camera, or distracted movements to gauge engagement and understanding.

02:51 The last factor to consider when recognizing emotional cues is the most direct, verbal communication.

02:59 Listen to the patient's language, descriptions, or choice of words that may indicate their thoughts, feelings, rationale or emotions.

03:10 Listen to the patient's verbal communication.

03:13 Understanding the feelings of your patients, and the facts that are driving those feelings will help you to better navigate and guide your patient interactions.

03:24 So, here's what I want you to do.

03:27 Seek to understand the facts and feelings of your patient.

03:33 Now, have you ever left a conversation and thought? "I don't think that person listened to a word that I said.

03:43 They smiled, nodded, and had a very glossy look over their eyes.

03:49 How did that make you feel? How apt were you to want to talk to that person more? Now, imagine that you are a patient unsure about this online environment, and unsure if your provider is listening to you.

04:07 How would that make you feel? Hearing is the act of perceiving noise, but listening is a true skill of hearing and understanding those around you.

04:18 In your telehealth practice, I want you to lean in and practice empathetic listening.

04:24 Meaning you are listening to seek and understand the facts and the feelings and here's how I want you to do it.

04:31 To practice empathetic listening in telehealth, first, listen to understand the patient.

04:38 Concentrate on the verbal and nonverbal cues that we discussed earlier.

04:43 Now, if you need more information, follow up with open ended questions.

04:48 Open ended questions are questions that offer more than a yes or no response.

04:54 So an example of an open ended question or statement includes, "Tell Me More. How did you feel about that?" After you have collected information, then summarize your understandings of both the facts and the feelings.

05:11 And after you have offered a summary statement, pause.

05:16 This is one of the most overlooked and crucial aspects of demonstrating empathy.

05:23 There is power in the pause.

05:26 The pause allows the person to validate or correct your understanding.

05:33 Meaning, you might say, "It sounds like you're feeling concerned with this treatment plan." And then it's super tempting to keep on talking.

05:44 Wait and pause. Before you say anything else, let the other person have an opportunity to respond.

05:52 They might validate your understanding and say, "Yes, I am feeling concerned about this treatment plan." And then continue to elaborate.

06:01 Or they might correct you and say that they're actually feeling frustrated with the treatment plan.

06:08 You don't know unless you pause and wait for them to respond.

06:15 A pause should be a five to seven seconds.

06:18 And this might feel like an eternity as the messenger in the communication.

06:24 But that is about how long it takes for a patient to receive, comprehend, and respond to a statement like this.

06:33 So... pause. Be quiet.

06:42 Acknowledge that your understanding of the facts and feelings might be incorrect.

06:48 Allow the person to affirm or correct your understanding.

06:53 Empathetic listening allows patients to be heard, for you to fully understand and for you to adapt your bedside approach to best meet the needs of your virtual patients.

07:06 So here's what I want you to do.

07:09 Listen, ask, and check for understanding.

07:14 Pause and then listen again.