Real-Life Communication
You are a neurologist working at a teaching hospital. You frequently give instructions to residents and interns, requesting that they perform certain procedures or order laboratory tests for your patients.
You have discovered that miscommunication happens all too often. Often, you end up getting blood tests that you don't want. And you don't get the tests that you do want.
It is very important that you communicate your instructions very clearly. Sometimes when you're very busy, it's easy to omit some part of the instruction, assuming that the resident understands what you mean.
Other times, you might give your instructions clearly, but the resident might misunderstand or not clearly comprehend what you wanted. When this happens, it means that your patients will not get the tests or treatments that you ordered. They could end up getting something that isn't suitable for their condition.
Right now, it is mosquito season. You are examining a patient who you think could be suffering from West Nile encephalitis. West Nile encephalitis is an inflammation of the brain caused by a virus that can be transmitted by mosquitoes. West Nile encephalitis has only been in North America since 1999. It is less common than the eastern equine encephalitis virus, which is transmitted by horses.
You decide to instruct the resident physician to order a test for West Nile encephalitis. It is important that he realizes that you want the test for this specific virus.
If he misunderstands and orders a test for the eastern equine encephalitis virus, the test will come back negative even if the patient has West Nile encephalitis. That means that the true condition will not be diagnosed and the patient will not get the treatment she needs.
What are some of the things you can do to ensure the correct test will be run?