Doctor-patient communication in general practice consultations

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Communication Studies
• General Practice Research

Background:

• A strong doctor-patient relationship is crucial for effective healthcare.
• Improving communication skills is a key goal in medical training.
• Understanding verbal interaction patterns is essential for analyzing consultations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To critically self-audit doctor-patient consultations using recorded interviews.
• To analyze categories of verbal interaction for studying the doctor-patient relationship.
• To explore the utility of these methods in medical teaching.

Main Methods:

• Conducting a detailed study of tape-recorded doctor-patient interviews.
• Performing a critical self-audit of consultations.
• Analyzing categories of verbal interaction within consultations.

Main Results:

• Verbal interaction analysis proved to be a practical and reliable method.
• The self-audit facilitated a deeper understanding of consultations.
• The research identified key elements of doctor-patient communication.

Conclusions:

• In-depth study of verbal interaction in consultations offers valuable guidelines for improving doctor-patient communication.
• The employed methods are suitable for both undergraduate and postgraduate medical teaching.
• Enhancing doctor-patient communication is achievable through systematic analysis of interactions.