What do we know from the patient’s perspective about effective communication?
In physiotherapy practice, effective communication and education are strongly linked to patient satisfaction, engagement, and the formation of a therapeutic alliance (Pinto et al., 2012). A systematic review by Oliveira et al. (2012) examined communication factors that contribute to patient satisfaction in clinical settings. They found that patients highly value physiotherapists who:
- Actively involve them in discussions about their care.
- Provide clear explanations.
- Demonstrate empathy and a caring approach to their interactions.
Further insights come from research into cardiac rehabilitation (Svavarsdóttir et al., 2016), which identified three key communication-related characteristics of clinicians who, from the patient’s perspective, are seen to excel in patient education:
- Trustworthiness of the clinician. Patients need to feel confident in the clinician’s honesty and transparency.
- Confidence in their knowledge. Patients feel reassured when a physiotherapist communicates clearly and confidently and without hesitation, showing their knowledge and understanding.
- The clinician’s ability to provide clear, personalised explanations. As we have seen already in our previous chapter, patients value education that is tailored to their needs rather than being given generic advice.
These findings emphasise that patients value a clinician who communicates confidently with honesty, and who welcomes questions and discussion.
Clinical pearl: Building trust through education
As a student physiotherapist, remember that patients often judge your clinical competence based on how well you explain things to them. Clear and confident communication builds trust, while confusing explanations can erode it quickly.
This highlights how important it is to practice and build on these skills as a student and a clinician.
