"theraputic communication....for all?"

[SNKerri]

I was just wondering what your theory on every single person in the health care field getting some sort of theraputic communication course/instruction?

I was once treated very badly by an orthodontist's assistant who went through only 8 weeks of training and had the athority to be messing with my teeth(another story altogether). Anyway...I was having trouble paying the ortho bills b/c of my parents recent divorce and loss of money from the parents(i WAS only 19 at the time) and was approached by the ASSISTANT who told me that she was told(assuming by the doc himself) to take the braces off of my teeth(i was missing 2 teeth that were in the process of being pulled down) if i couldnt pay right then. When I explained the situation(ill admit i got a little teary eyed) she told me to "get over the divorce already, there is no sympathy for you here, we are just asking for a $250 dollar a month payment." This was taken very hard by me as i couldnt afford those payments at that very moment and i left the office, needless to say i was obligated to finish txmt there because it would cost even more money(original cost $5000 to be paid monthly)to go elsewhere(and i could thanks to credit cards). Well enough of my rant...what is ure opinion about this dental assistant and the need for theraputic communication instruction for all health care workers? (lets not even get into how bad the business is for allowing the assisant to approach me in front of other pts. about a sensitive issue and then mouthing off)

Kerri

(apologies for the miserable spelling)

[1Tulip]

It's really simple. Doctors and dentists who allow their pts to be treated this way, or who mouth off to their pts like this, end up getting sued. Does that mean I think you had a case? No. Does that mean I think the DDS was guilty of malpractice? No. Do I favor the plaintiff's bar (malpractice attorneys)? Not really. But the reality is this:

Most doctors who end up getting sued are the ones who p*ss off their patients. I have seen several really bad physicians (one we called "Iatrogenic Ed") who were awful. But their patients ADORED them! On the other hand, I've known some who were superb, who did nothing wrong, but an outcome was not ideal and patient felt it was his fault and WHAM.

And, a training course? Don't know if it would work. Lots of people who really know better are rude. For my own selfish purposes, I would not want to have to deal with patients without some level of comfort in communicating with them.

[Daytonite, BSN, RN]

Teaching therapeutic communication is a educational activity that involves not only the learning of some basic foundation, but the application and assessment of using it and a bit of knowledge of basic psychology. It involves the ability to think and apply rules and foundation information. The encouragement of thinking and applying knowledge is not something that is generally done with most high school students unless they are focused on attending college. Therapeutic communication is more of a collegiate thinking and assessing activity and people with only a basic high school education are often just not up to understanding that level of learning unless they are motivated.

If people can't understand very basic customer service, they are not going to understand therapeutic communication at all.

[studentnursetj007]

I just finished my first semester of nursing school and we had a whole unit over therapeutic/nontherapeutic communication so if you are enrolled in a nursing program, you do get training. This was poor judgment by both the assistant and the doctor. I would have definately taken my business elsewhere if at all possible. Our training was very good and considering the amount of time she had in training it sounds like she either didn't get it or was asleep during it!

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

Many moons ago I completed a program that trained me to become a medical assistant. The program covered basic office etiquette, but failed to even mention anything related to therapeutic communication. In fact, I learned nothing about therapeutic communication methods until I attended vocational nursing school.

The reality of the situation is that most allied health professionals, such as office assistants and technicians, are not trained in the art of therapeutic communication. Often these people attend a community college or business school program for less than one year and aren't paid very well for the amount of services they perform.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

I would have definately taken my business elsewhere if at all possible. Our training was very good and considering the amount of time she had in training it sounds like she either didn't get it or was asleep during it!

This rude orthodontic assistant was not a nurse, so it was unlikely that she received any type of training on therapeutic communication methods. The original poster indicated that this assistant possessed only 8 weeks of training for her position.

[nurse4theplanet, RN]

#1 I am so sorry that this happened to you

#2 I am sorry about the burdens that have been laid upon you because of the divorce, and this woman had NO right to even point it out...none of her business in my oppinion

#3 She cannot nor can your doctor take your braces OFF unless you give them permission:angryfire This was just an empty threat used as a scare tactic to get you to pay. What are they going to do.....strap you down and force your mouth open?

As far as therapeutic communication is concerned......I enjoyed learning about it and it gave a lot of textbook definition and pointed examples about techniques that were just common sense to me that I had been using my entire life.

Someone who is rude is going to continue to be rude whether you teach them communication techniques until you are blue in the face. Just part of life. Sorry that you had to deal with this....I would catch up on my payments then complain to the doc about her.