Assess The Importance Of Listening In Communication

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“During the past 20 years, interest in complementary/alternative medicine has increased. Seventy per cent of the public are in favour of complementary/alternative medicine becoming widely available in the National Health Service - particularly osteopathy, acupuncture, chiropractic, and homeopathy” (world Health Organisation, 2015). Due to the rise in consumerism within the healthcare field, patients now have more choice and they are now leaning more towards complementary therapy as an alternative to conventional western medicine. This is why Complementary Healthcare Practitioners need to utilise their professional and personal skills. This will go a long way to them being recognised as a competent professional within a healthcare environment …show more content…
For communication to work correctly the message that the patient brings must heard and retained thoroughly and positively by the Practitioner. There are differences between hearing and listening. Hearing is one of the five senses and it is the ability to recognise sound, listening requires the listener to pay attention and provide feedback where required. Good listening creates an environment where the patient feels safe to express how they are feeling and what their main concerns are. Effective listening can help relieve any negative emotions that the patient may have. The practitioner should focus on the patient and again note the patient’s body language and look for non-verbal clues, nervousness, rigid posture, sitting on the edge of the chair could indicate that the patient has more to say but they are holding back for some reason or another. Intelligent listening is a dynamic procedure where the Practitioner obviously hears and comprehends what the patient has said, and afterward can reword and condense the dialog back to the patient. The point of this procedure is to clarify precisely information exchanged, as well as it being a more dynamic response, which additionally permits the Practitioner to give advice, support and encouragement (Wood, 2013). A Practitioner could quickly adapt to reflective listening. Have a go at coordinating their non-verbal communication, as well as the understanding's vocal tonality and pick comparative helpful vocabulary. Careful listening is not rushed, so abstain from talking over or at the patient with quick complex dialog, as patients will find this tiring or fierce. Fundamentally, a professional with the ability of intelligent listening will benefit from the f building a trustful and association with their