Improving Patient-Provider Communication: Insights for Social Work

This course is designed to introduce social workers to the dynamics of patient provider communication and its importance in improving health care outcomes with a particular emphasis on African American patient experiences. Attendees will learn about the models of communication that provide the highest quality of care, what patients really perceive when facing specific clinician verbal and non-verbal behaviors, and the short and long-term physical and mental health outcomes associated with varying levels of patient-provider communication. The communicative role of social work on health care teams will be discussed as well as strategies for advocating for patients with limited communication skills or few companions and caregivers present to augment patient-provider interactions. Specific research conducted by the instructor on African American men's health communication will be presented in the context of lessons learned about patient and provider communication patterns in the context of cancer care, primary care, mental health discussions, and family interactions.

Registration for this course is closed. Visit the CE Course Catalog for more offerings.