The environment that happens around a patient-clinician encounter is not just about the patient’s emotion–it’s about yours too…

I just worked with a fantastic group of Palliative Medicine physicians in Sydney, and have a couple of tips inspired by the work we did together. One of their big take-homes? Using ‘and’ not ‘but’–especially in a goals of care conversation. It sounds simplistic–but find out why this small word change creates something big.  – […]

We all fall into the trap of thinking — and then talking — too many steps ahead of our patient. Here’s a counterintuitive cure. Another tip inspired by our friends at #vitaltalkdownunder (location hint: Cabrito Coffee in Sydney’s CBD).

Have you had a moment when multi-tasking or noticing your computer took you away from a conversation, especially during an important moment with a patient?  This week’s helpful tip gives you an idea on how to recover from that, ground yourself and start again. 

We’ve been talking about how emotions influence communication for years. But Pixar’s nifty visualizations pump some new life into one of our old tips.

Finding a community and colleagues who can support clinicians in improving communications skills is essential.   We can do so much more with a tribe, and hopefully the tools and videos presented in VitalTalk is a good starting point for you to grow your network.   Here is a musing on being part of a […]

In doing goals of care conversations, one of the most common pitfalls we see is when clinicians try to elicit values by asking lots & lots of questions–patients can end up feeling interrogated. A couple of key questions are great–we love the ‘what’s important’ question. But after that–try this approach, derived from motivational interviewing, the […]

Uh, no. While it is possible to do a study that associates physician optimism with ‘compassion’ scores, if you relax the definition of compassion to include ‘warmth’, the goofiest assumption driving this study design was unearthed by Denise Grady in her New York Times piece: “We thought the appropriate methodology might protect us like a shield.” Really?    Great communication is not about shielding […]

You don’t have to be a genius every time you open your mouth. In fact, that aspiration might work against you…