Communication Skills is an accessible textbook for nursing and healthcare students seeking to understand the concept of communication and to develop their communication skills.
Through clear explanations, case studies and activities, the book will help you to understand the principles of communication and develop your own skills for your healthcare practice. You will learn:

About the authors; Introduction

1. Communication as a concept
Kay Norman and Erica Pavord
     1.1 Introduction
     1.2 Defining communication
     1.3 Communication frameworks
     1.4 The transmission model
     1.5 The transactional model
     1.6 Channels of communication
     1.7 Self-awareness in communication
     1.8 Reflective practice
     Summary

2. Communication skills in assessing, planning providing and managing care
Pádraig Ó Lúanaigh
     2.1 Introduction
     2.2 Verbal and non-verbal communication
     2.3 Active listening and appropriate questioning
     2.4 Emotional vocabulary
     2.5 Caring conversations
     2.6 Brief interventions
     2.7 Duty of candour
     2.8 Written communication
     2.9 Social media and electronic communication
     2.10 Sharing information effectively
     Summary

3. Communication skills in promoting health
Alison Lewis
     3.1 Introduction
     3.2 Assessing motivation for change
     3.3 Explaining and evidence-based approach to health
     3.4 Strategies for disseminating information
     3.5 Addressing common health risk behaviours
     Summary

4. Communication skills for therapeutic intervention
Erica Pavord
     4.1 Introduction
     4.2 Developing a therapeutic relationship
     4.3 Motivational interviewing
     4.4 Reminiscence therapies
     4.5 De-escalation strategies and techniques
     4.6 Distraction and diversion strategies
     Summary

5. Communication skills in difficult situations
Louise Carter
     5.1 Introduction
     5.2 Demonstrating compassion and sensitivity
     5.3 Communication vulnerability and ageing
     5.4 Sensory impairment
     5.5 Aphasia
     5.6 Dementia
     5.7 Breaking bad news
     Summary

6. Communication and diversity
Naomi A. Watson
     6.1 Introduction
     6.2 Embracing diversity
     6.3 In what ways are we diverse?
     6.4 Communicating with diverse colleagues
     Summary

7. Communication skills for teamworking
Kay Norman
     7.1 Introduction
     7.2 Strengths-based approaches
     7.3 Negotiation strategies
     7.4 Collaborative working
     7.5 Organisational culture
     7.6 Dealing with team conflict
     7.7 Supervising others
     Summary

8. Communication for patient safety
Val Nixon
     8.1 Introduction
     8.2 Development of patient safety
     8.3 Incident reporting
     8.4 A human factors approach to patient safety
     8.5 Learning from errors
     Summary

Index