ASSESSMENT OF COMMUNICATION SKILLS

ASSESSMENT OF COMMUNICATION SKILLS

 

Abstract

As a profession, Communication has evolved over many years from what was called “publicity” to a wide range of activities that now includes such things as: Public Relations, Internal Communication, Marketing Communication, Events, Brand Management, Analyst Relations and Advertising. While other professions have developed skills competency models, very little has been done to identify the many and varied skills that it takes to be an effective and successful Communication professional. Because of the lack of standards, guidelines and defined skills, the profession has suffered.  The assessment of communication skills requires the training supervisor to directly observe a doctor-patient interaction. It is ideally suited to an outpatient scenario, but can be used during an in-patient interaction. The training supervisor and trainee should arrange a time to meet and observe the clinical interaction. During the interaction the supervisor should complete the assessment on the following sheet, making notes where appropriate. After the clinical interaction the supervisor should provide feedback to the trainee based on the elements assessed, outlining both the positive aspects and areas for improvement. The supervisor should discuss whether any further training or support is required for the trainee, or whether further assessment is required after the implementation of any proposed improvements.         

    Communication Skills Assessment Tool by Rich Young

As a profession, Communication has evolved over many years from what was called“publicity” to a wide range of activities that now includes such things as: Public Relations,Internal Communication, Marketing Communication, Events, Brand Management, Analyst Relations and Advertising.While other professions have developed skills competency models, very little has been done to identify the many and varied skills that it takes to be an effective and successful Communication professional. Because of the lack of standards, guidelines and defined skills,the profession has suffered.

Assessment :

Educational assessment, the process of documenting knowledge, skills, attitudes, and beliefs

Health assessment, a plan of care that identifies the specific needs of the client and how those needs will be addressed by the healthcare system

Nursing assessment, the gathering of information about a patient's physiological, psychological, sociological, and spiritual status

Psychiatric assessment, a process of gathering information about a person within a psychiatric or mental health service with the purpose of making a diagnosis

Psychological assessment, an examination into a person's mental health by a mental health    professional such as a psychologist

Risk assessment, the determination of quantitative or qualitative value of risk related to a concrete situation and a recognized threat

Tax assessment, value calculated as the basis for determining the amounts to be paid or assessed for tax or insurance purposes

Vulnerability assessment, the process of identifying, quantifying, and prioritizing (or ranking) the vulnerabilities in a system

Political assessment, assessment of officeholders for political donations.

Communication:

 Communication (from Latin commūnicāre, meaning "to share") is the activity of conveying information through the exchange of thoughts, messages, or information, as by speech, visuals, signals, writing, or behavior. It is the meaningful exchange of information between two or more living creatures.

One definition of communication is “any act by which one person gives to or receives from another person information about that person's needs, desires, perceptions, knowledge, or affective states. Communication may be intentional or unintentional, may involve conventional or unconventional signals, may take linguistic or non-linguistic forms, and may occur through spoken or other modes.”

Communication requires a sender, a message, and a recipient, although the receiver doesn't have to be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast distances in time and space. Communication requires that the communicating parties share an area of communicative commonality. The communication process is complete once the receiver understands the sender's message.

Communicating with others involves three primary steps: ◦Thought: First, information exists in the mind of the sender. This can be a concept, idea, information, or feelings. Encoding: Next, a message is sent to a receiver in words or other symbols. Decoding: Lastly, the receiver translates the words or symbols into a concept or information that a person can understand.

RANZCOG Assessment and Feedback of Communication Skills

What is this assessment tool?

The Communication Checklist has been designed after a consensus meeting of some of the world’s principal authorities on the essential communication elements that make up a successful doctor-patient interaction1. Whilst there are a large number of tools available to assess communication skills, the following model, which was designed to be used by medical supervisors and faculty, was found to be self explanatory, have good inter-observer reliability and be a reasonably efficient way of providing feedback on trainee’s communication skills2. Development of the original tool was supported by the Bayer Institute for Health Care Communication and The Fetzer Institute. The attached tool is the Kalamazoo Essential Elements Communication Checklist (adapted).

When to use this tool.

This tool is designed to provide assistance in providing feedback to any trainee who maybenefit from improving their communication skills. This may be in the context of a borderline end of term assessment or from mid-term feedback,

where communication skills have been found to be an area of concern. The decision whether it is appropriate to perform a  formal assessment of communication skills can be made by the training supervisor or the chair of the regional Training and Accreditation Committee. After discussing the mid or end of term feedback with the trainee, the training supervisor should then recommend a formal assessment of communication skills using the following tool.

Who should use this tool?

The tool is designed to be used by training supervisors and the assessment should be done by a Fellow of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. If the training supervisor is unable to conduct the assessment, it can be done by another nominated Fellow of the college.

How to use this tool.

The assessment of communication skills requires the training supervisor to directly observe a doctor-patient interaction. It is ideally suited to an outpatient scenario, but can be used during an in-patient interaction. The training supervisor and trainee should arrange a time to meet and observe the clinical interaction. During the interaction the supervisor shouldcomplete the assessment on the following sheet, making notes where appropriate. After the clinical interaction the supervisor should provide feedback to the trainee based on the elements assessed, outlining both the positive aspects and areas for improvement. The supervisor should discuss whether any further training or support is required for the trainee, or whether further assessment is required after the implementation of any proposed improvements. If no further assessment is required, the trainee returns to the normal three and six month assessments. A copy of the form should be retained in the trainee’s and supervisor’s records. It need not be returned to College House.

Summary of Assessment process

Assessments that are other than satisfactory in the end of term assessment (relating to communication issues) Or Concerns raised at mid-term assessment regarding Communication skills

▼

Supervisor to discuss concern regarding communication

with trainee and recommend a formal assessment of communication skills

▼

Formal assessment of clinical interaction arranged

Assessment and feedback provided using The Communication Checklist below

 ▼

Strategies for improvement or reassessment discussed if necessary

Building Effective Interpersonal Communication Skills:  Self-Assessment Exercise

            In today's team-oriented workplace, the development of good interpersonal communication skills is an important key to success.

The following self-assessment exercise is designed to help you evaluate your own
interpersonal communication skills and style, and provide you with helpful tips for
becoming a good communicator - and team player!  

UNIVERSITY OF JYVÄSKYLÄ  LANGUAGE CENTRE:

ASSESSMENT CRITERIA FOR COMMUNICATION SKILLS GRADE	INTERACTION	PROFESSIONAL VOCABULARY	LANGUAGE QUALITY	FLUENCY	PRONUN-CIATION	PRESENTATION
Excellent (5)	Can present ideas articulately and persuasively in a complex discussion. Sophisticated arguing and turn-taking strategies. Has no difficulty in understanding idiomatic language use or different registers.	Has a very good command of professional vocabulary, allowing gaps to be readily overcome with circumlocutions.	Can consistently maintain a high degree of grammatical accuracy; errors are rare and difficult to spot. Correct use of idiomatic expressions and collocations.	Can express himself/herself fluently and spontaneously, almost effortlessly. Only a conceptually difficult subject can hinder a natural, smooth flow of language. Wide vocabulary evident.	Mastery of the sound system of English is obvious. Accurate pronunciation and intonation in most instances.	Student is thoroughly familiar with the topic and can respond confidently and spontaneously to complex questions. Presentation is well structured, uses transitional elements, and follows the conventions of the field. Good eye contact, no reading from his/her paper. Level appropriate for intended audience.
Very good (4)	Can successfully present and justify ideas in a formal discussion. Turn-taking handled appropriately. Can recognise register shifts and a wide range of idiomatic expressions.	Has a good command of professional vocabulary, allowing gaps to be generally overcome with circumlocutions.	Can maintain a good degree of grammatical accuracy; occasional errors do not impede communication. Largely correct use of idiomatic expressions and collocations.	Fluent and spontaneous, but occasionally needs to search for expressions or compromise on saying exactly what he/she wants to.	Pronunciation and intonation generally accurate, errors do not cause misunderstanding.	Knows the topic well. Can handle complex questions with relative ease. Presentation is clearly structured and appropriate to the audience. Consistent use of transitional elements. Good eye contact, minimal need to refer to papers. Level appropriate for intended audience.
Good (3)	Keeps up with the discussion and can justify an opinion. Responds and interacts adequately with other speakers. Uses communication strategies well when unsure about e.g. idiomatic use.	Has an adequate vocabulary to express himself/herself on matters connected to his/her field.	Can communicate with reasonable accuracy and can correct mistakes if they have led to misunderstanding.	Can produce stretches of language with a fairly even tempo. Although can be hesitant as he/she searches for expressions, there are few noticeably long pauses.	Some inaccuracy in pronunciation and intonation. Problems with voiced/voiceless consonants, for example.	Evidence of a standard three part structure and some use of transitional elements. Maintains contact with the audience. Level is appropriate, but the listener is not totally convinced that the presenter knows his/her topic well.
Satis-factory (2)	Has some difficulty keeping up with the discussion and arguing an opinion. Limited turn-taking and use of communication strategies.	Limited professional vocabulary.	Communication generally successful though limited in terms of accuracy. Some unresolved misunderstanding.	Generally acceptable tempo, but often hesitant as he/she searches for expressions. Some noticeable pauses.	Frequent inaccuracy in pronunciation and intonation. Mother tongue interference apparent.	Some structural weaknesses and only limited transitional elements. Basic level of acquaintance with the topic.
Poor (1)	Has marked difficulty in keeping up with the discussion and contributes only occasionally.	Basic professional vocabulary only.	Communication characterized by frequent inaccuracies and misunderstanding.	Frequent hesitations and pauses, can produce only short stretches of language at best	Key words regularly mispronounced, strong mother-tongue influence.	Structure lacks coherence. Speaker unfamiliar with topic. Transitional elements largely missing.
In-adequate (0)	Severe difficulty in following the discussion and no active involvement.	Professional vocabulary minimal.	Communication limited at best.	Cannot produce complex sentences or link phrases coherently.	Control of the sound system so weak that comprehension is difficult.	Lacks the features of an acceptable presentation

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JOURNALS

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