Skills Involved in Discovering and Responding to Patients’ Feelings

1. Picking up and responding to Verbal / Non-Verbal Cues
   • ‘You said you’ve been feeling quite down. Could you tell me more about that?’
   • ‘It seems like you’re quite tense – would it help to talk about it?’
   • ‘You sound sad when you talk about Jennifer’
2. Direct Questions
   • ‘How did that leave you feeling?’
3. Using acceptance, empathy, concern, understanding
   • To communicate that you’re interested in their feelings
   • ‘I can see that must’ve been hard for you’
4. Asking for particular examples
   • ’Can you remember the last time you felt depressed? What happened?’
5. Effectively transition to another topic
   • ‘I think I understand now a little bit of what you’ve been feeling. Let’s look at the practical things that we can do together to help.’

Exercise:  Brainstorm how you would make the transition from discussing your patient’s feelings to discussing biomedical issues or management?

Silverman, J., Kurtz, S., & Draper, J. (2013). Skills for Communicating with Patients (Thrid Edit). London: Radcliffe Publishing.