SHC 21: Introduction to communication in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings

1. Understand why communication is important in the work setting

1.1 People communicate by many ways including non-verbal highlighting facial expression, eye contact, body language, physical gestures such as touch, dress and behavior, along with verbal including tone and pitch of voice. The age and knowledge of a person one is communicating with, also dictates somewhat the amount of vocabulary i.e words and terms used too . People communicate to share ideas, information, educate, build relationships, express feelings and emotions, to be social, ask questions and expand their knowledge and share different experiences.

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Individuals may not clearly understand what you are saying to them if those terms are used. If someone is hard of hearing then calling them on a telephone would not be recommended unless they had specialist equipment dedicated to improve the quality of the call so they could hear you properly. If someone comes from a different country, then language can present barriers too. Other barriers could include: emotional distress, health issues, cultural differences and environmental problems

3.2 Demonstrate how to reduce barriers to communication in different ways. One of the most important factors would include making the other person feel at ease and comfortable with you. They should feel happy and safe in your company. Use friendly facial expressions, be encouraging and actively listen and acknowledge what they’re saying to you. Speak clearly and not too fast. Remove any distractions such as background noise and make sure any hearing aids an individual has, is working correctly. Use non-verbal methods to communicate interest, sympathy or understanding. Repeat things when necessary and make sure the physical environment is ideally suited to the individual especially if they have a physical disability, where being confined to a wheelchair makes it impossible to meet you on the 1st floor if there is no lift in the building.

3.3 The ways to check that communication has been understood could include