Unit 051 Promote Communication in Health, Social Care or Children’s and Young People’s settings
Outcome 1 Understand why effective communication is important in the work setting.
1) Identify the different reasons people communicate.
People communicate for many reasons, to build relationships, to portray their feelings, to share ideas and thoughts, to gain reassurance and acknowledgement. Good communication helps one to express needs and make people aware or alert of boundaries, so situations at work, home etc… can run smoothly.
2) Explain how communication affects relationships in the work setting.
Relationships and communication skills go hand in hand. In my work setting I make sure I greet parents and children with a smile and ask children to hang up their coats so they feel welcome and comfortable. Without effective communication businesses and communities would not be successful e.g. Agencies and Companies must have effective communication with Parents, Teachers and consumers in order to build and gain loyalty. Businesses need to make their clients feel their needs are being met quickly, to ensure positive image.
Outcome 2 Be able to meet the communication and language needs, wishes and preferences of individuals
2) Describe the factors to consider when promoting effective communication.
You need to consider a number of factors for example:
Verbal communication: Tone and pitch of your voice, does it suit the situation or topic? A louder more direct pitch maybe required if trying to get the attention of a group of children to come back inside. However this would not be suitable if a child was upset say for example if they have wet themselves and are embarrassed, this would need a quieter and understanding tone to reassure them.
Use of language is important, when talking to children you need to keep things simpler than if you were talking to an adult, however if you talking to an adult using very simple instructions they may think your patronizing them, so it is important to choose your language carefully.
Non-verbal communication: Facial and hand gestures needs to be appropriate to the situation or the surroundings you’re in. A smile and perhaps a hand on their shoulder to a child, that has wet himself/herself is reassuring. Eye contact is an important factor as this engages the person, keeping them focused on what you are discussing. By making eye contact you are directing your conversation at that specific person or to many people, demonstrating that you are devoting your time and are not able to be distracted as if you would by looking around. Body language plays an important part, for example folded arms can indicate you are being defensive or not open to suggestions, hands on hips, rolling of eyes and huffing can seem rude and disrespectful.
Outcome 3 Be able to overcome barriers to communication
1) Explain how people from different backgrounds may use and/or interpret communication methods in different ways.
Communication can be slightly different when using it with other people from different backgrounds. Communication can be interpreted in different ways by different people, this is because they may not speak English, if from a different country, or they may not understand you. This is also a barrier to communication. Other people may think that if they’re being listened to, they will express their beliefs and their opinions about life.
Different people from other backgrounds may use verbal communication to express what they think, however they could also use non-verbal communication to put their point across.
Parents of a child may have other preferences for their child to other parents. This means the practitioner will have to respect there differences.
Children could use different body language and facial expressions to express their needs or what they want to do in the workplace.
Practitioners may use gestures and body language to show the parents that they are always friendly