communication skills used in health education, methods of health education, uses,qualification of educator

1. AMANY R. ABO-EL-SEOUD
Prof. of Community Medicine
Zagazig University, EGYPT

2. Define communication, health
education, knowledge,
attitudes, belief and behavior.
Describe the communication
process
Plan a session of health
education

3.  Communication: It is a requirement for life
in any society. It is the process in which
feelings or ideas are expressed as messages:
sent, received and comprehended.
 The process of communication is dynamic,
continuous, irreversible and transactional.

4.  Health education: To raise awareness of
people to prevent disease and to improve
knowledge, attitude and practice of
individuals for healthy living.
 Knowledge: confident understanding of a
subject with the ability to use it for a
specific purpose. ‫المعرفة‬

5. Attitude: positive, negative or
neutral view of a person, behavior
or event. ‫موقف‬
Belief: a subjective mental
interpretation derived from
perception, reasoning or
communication. ‫اعتقاد‬
Behavior: actions or reaction of a
person in relation to certain
circumstances. ‫تصرف‬

6.  Human communication is the process of
creating meaning between two or more
people.
 It is to transfer Ideas - Information - Norms
‫-نماذج‬ Values - Attitudes through message to
another party so that it can be understood
and acted upon.

7. The importance of communication:
 To make people understand us and to
understand others.
 To make us accepted.
 To undertake something.
 To strengthen the human relationships and
social links.
 To spread the human spirit of friendship and
cooperation.

8.  To improve patient compliance
 To improve patient satisfaction
 To improve health outcomes for patients
 To improve the accuracy and efficiency of
the consultation and hence is more
rewarding for the doctor

10. Elements of communication
The Sender Who Sends the message: doctor, nurse,
parents, actor, teacher
The Message What Ideas, Information, Feelings,
Emotions. Can be at personal
hygiene, nutrition guide, safe
motherhood, risk factors etc
The Channel How Means of message transmission.
Face-face, group discussion, radio,
newspaper, conference, T.V,internet.
The Receptor To whom The person to whom we talk or the
one who receives the message.
Illiterate or highly educated, culture,
habits, traditions, language.
The Feedback With What
Effects
The information or the reaction
given to the receptor

11. 1- At the source or sender level
 Does not know or convinced with others
 cannot communicate the message.
 Does not formulate clearly the objectives or the
message.
 Does not choose the suitable language of the
receptor.
 Does not change the tone.
The communicator must :
CLEAR= C: Clarify L: Listen E: Encourage A:
Appreciate R: Reassure
Do not give orders. Do not attack. Do not be
aggressive or ridiculous.

12. 2- At the message level
 Difficult words.
 Is not of interest to the receiver.
 Is not related to the stated objectives.
 Unclear, confusing.
3- At the channel level
 Noise.
 Not adapted to the message transmission.
 Not accessible to the receptor.

13. 4- At the receptor level
 Indifferent to the message.
 Could not decode (understand) the message.
 Cannot receive the message.
 Poor listening conditions.
5- At the feedback level
 Feedback not well prepared.
 Limited time.
 Selection of those who respond.
 Question poorly formulated.

15. Verbal: By saying or writing words e.g. talk,
discussion, conferences, or Presentation,
books, newspapers.
Non–verbal:
Intentional (signs and movements).
Unconscious (Feelings) as way of client’s
walking, sitting, hand movements, facial
expression, vocal
characteristics
(pitch, volume, rate).

16. (1) Skills of history taking
 Welcome the patient, stand up, shack hands.
 Call him/her with his/her name
 Asking in voice tone showing your care
 Asking one question every time.
 Giving open questions.
 During the client's answer, help him/her to
continue.
 Asking the question in different ways to be sure
that the client is understanding.

17. (2) Skills of communication in Counseling
 Definition: Counseling is not guiding,
recommending, persuading, instructing
and advising. Counseling is helping one
person at one time or several together in
a group or family to live in more satisfying
and resourceful way i.e. counseling is
helping a person (or a group) to develop
self-help and self-care abilities.

18.  Counseling is valuable at any age, in
health and in illness, whenever
adaptation to physical psychological
changes is required. It is helpful to the
elderly and their care giver, as well as to
children and their parents, to women at
all their life stages, e.g. puberty and
child bearing, motherhood and
menopause. It is also helpful for women
undergoing hysterectomy, mastectomy, or
seeking treatment for infertility.

19. I- Preparing For a Counseling Session
 Physical Setting:
The ideal context is a quiet, calm, setting
in which there is little chance of being
interrupted.
 Timing: The maximum time allowed for
each session ranges between 45-60
minutes. The best timing is when the
counselee is more likely attentive not
sleepy or in pain.

20. II- During the Interaction:
 To be able to help the counselee to talk,
disclose, reflect, think and take decisions.
The counselor should master the following
skills namely:
 Ability to build trust
 Ask questions
 Respond therapeutically
 Listen attentively

21. Counselingimpliesthefollowing4steps:
1-Helpingthecounselee
2-Helpingthecounselee
3-Encouragingthecounselee
4-Helpingthecounselee
Toidentifywhatistheproblem
Todiscoverwhyitistheproblem
Tolookatpossiblesolution
Tochooseanappropriatesolution

22.  Any crisis situation- breaking bad news.
 Bereavement or grief.
 Terminal illness / palliative care.
 Marital problems. Family problems.
 Sexual dysfunction. Infertility.
 Chronic pain.
 Anxiety and stress. Depression.
 Intellectual handicap in child.
 Any disease or illness, especially severe illness.
 Sexual abuse/ child abuse. Domestic violence.
 Insomnia and other sleep disturbances.

23.  H.E.is translation of what is known about
health to desirable behavior by means of
educational process.
 H.E. is the process by which people learn to
behave in healthy manner
 H.E. is subject concerned with methods, that
facilitate voluntary adaptation of behavior
that are conductive to health.

24. Definition:
Is planned opportunities for people
to learn about health and
make changes in their behavior
Steps: to know (knowledge)
to feel importance to health(attitude)
to change (practice)
KAP

25.  Improvement of quality of life
 Restore state of good health
 Make the best of remaining health
i.e. in health promotion, prevention of
hazards, control of disease and complications
and in rehabilitation.
i.e. in physical, mental, social health
it is life long process.

26.  Either to give new information (unknown before) or change
old wrong knowledge.
 Health education covers all the levels of community
medicine, in health promotion (to give information to
people how to be healthy) in prevention of health hazards
(give information about vaccination, smoking hazards) in
control of disease (to take treatment according to doctor
advice) and in rehabilitation (to use the remaining health
capabilities).
 Health education is concerned with physical, mental and
social wellbeing
 It is life long process
 It can be directed to individual, family or community

27.  Health education improves the health status of
individuals, families, communities, states, and
the nation.
 Health education enhances the quality of life for all
people.
 Health education reduces premature deaths.
 By focusing on prevention, health education reduces the
costs (both financial and human) that individuals,
employers, families, insurance companies, medical
facilities, communities, the state and the nation would
spend on medical treatment.

28.  Some people specialize in health education
(trained and/or certified health education
specialists).
 Others perform selected health education
functions as part of what they consider their
primary responsibility (medical treatment,
nursing, social work, physical therapy, oral
hygiene, etc.).
 Lay workers learn on the job to do specific,
limited educational tasks to encourage healthy
behavior.

29.  The educator
 The message
 The target group
 The methods
 Feedback

30.  "who says what and when to whom by which
channel"
therefore we should consider the following:
the message, sender, recipient, method,
barriers, evaluation

31. * Pre and post testing: for the same group or
for 2 groups
Every thing should be evaluated (the
educator, message, method and the persons
who are educated)
* Increased number of good behaviors
* Change in the morbidity & mortality rates

32.  Brief introduction, aim and gentle asking for
co-operation
 Simple language, direct questions
 Not ask for 2 things in the same q.
 Don’t use negative negative q.
 Short answers, closed q.
 Not too long questionnaire
 It must be reliable, valid

33.  2 types of questions:
 Qualitative (Likert’s scale) for attitude or
yes/no
 Quantitative: giving % or number
 Multiple choices are easier