The health communication model—assertiveness, clarity, and positivity, which in a more synthetic way is called “ACP Model”—allows in an aggregated and interdependent way the use of communication skills in the health relationship, which allow, throughout the consultation, the establishment of a relationship of greater proximity, trust, openness, balanced and with results for health, even after the interaction ends. Among the results obtained in nine focus groups, consisting of 55 participants, of which 25 are specialists in health literacy and the remaining 30 have not previously experienced the ACP model, all are unanimous in the importance of developing communication skills in the therapeutic relationship through assertiveness, clarity, and positivity as a cognitive script of previous skills. It is also confirmed that this aggregate and interdependent group of communication skills increases the level of knowledge and understanding of the patient's health, thus promoting better health outcomes.
TopGuidelines For A Better Therapeutic Relationship
However, communication, being a central competence of professionals (Williams et al., 2002), is often not understood by patients. There are data (Ong et al., 1995) that indicate that, after leaving the consultation, the patient remembers 50% or less of the information given to him.
Communication used by the professional and other biopsychosocial issues related to the profile of the recipients, such as, people with low socioeconomic strata, ethnic minorities, the elderly, individuals with cognitive disabilities, with chronic illnesses, low levels of education, or poor skills in literacy, they may adversely affect the patient's understanding of his health status, as well as his therapeutic adherence (Kripalani, S., Bentgtzen, R., Henderson, L., Jacobson, T ., 2008).
The health professional has an increased responsibility, which does not mean an assistentialist posture to replace the patient (except if he clearly wants to). Health professionals are required to complete their skills that go beyond “cure” (Greenhalgh, & Heath, 2010). Its intervention is cognitive, emotional and psychological, based on attention, dynamic and endowed with knowledge, skills and attributes (Tench & Konczos, 2013) in order to contribute to the best health results.
In this sense and counting on a “subjective” experience of the consultation (Hulsman, 2009), some postures and attitudes that fall to the health professional as the “strongest side” of this relatioship are highlighted, without intending to be exhaustive (National Action Plan to Improve Health Literacy, 2010; Vaz de Almeida, 2018, p. 33).