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Volume 2 Issue 5
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I
ssues and
P
eople
Patient Communication Scenario:
HOWWOULDYOUHANDLE
ANANGRYPATIENT?
How do you think this scenario
could be handled?
It’s the kind of situation that health care
workers are most worried about—what do
I do with somebody who gets angry? But
there are several general strategies that
dentists can use to de-escalate the situation:
Listen.
The first defence is good listening.
Reflect on what the patient has said and
what they are upset about. Try to show
empathy, if you can.
Avoid.
This doesn’t mean avoiding the
patient—it means giving them 5 or 10
minutes to cool down, and then telling
them, “I’m in the middle of seeing a
patient right now but I’ll come back and
we can talk about this in 10 or 15 minutes.”
Don’t let them stew so long that it makes
things worse, but also use this time to
gather your own thoughts.
Oblige.
Ask the patient: “What can I do
to make this situation better?” It’s about
figuring out what they want and what’s
behind their anger.
Integrate.
This approach is a collaboration
between your interests and the patient’s
interests. Ask the patient, “How can we
come together and figure out something
that works for both of us?”
It’s the kind of situation that health care workers are most worried
about—what do I do with somebody who gets angry?
On Oasis Discussions, we presented dentists with the following scenario:
An angry patient is dissatisfied with treatment received in your office and refuses to leave a full waiting
room. How would you handle this situation?
We received a lot of responses from Canadian dentists and asked a communications expert for advice. Dr. Sheela Raja
is a licensed clinical psychologist and assistant professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago, where she teaches health
communication and behavioural medicine.
Compromise.
Closely related to
integrating, the compromise approach is
where everyone gives a little bit on either
side, which allows you to come up with
short-term solutions.
Dominate.
You could say, “I’m the boss,
it has to be done my way.” Sometimes
it works, but other times it just escalates
the situation. Of all the strategies, the
dominating approach should be used the
most sparingly.
It’s also a good idea to have any of these
discussions with the patient in a private
setting, away from the crowded waiting
room.
What stood out for you in the
responses from dentists?
First off, it was great to see how strongly this
question resonated with dentists—they had
so much to say! Some specific suggestions
stood out to me as good approaches:
Use a mediator.
Some people said
they would invite the patient back for a
discussion and use a mediator, usually
another staff member who was not
involved in the conflict.
Dr. Sheela Raja
BS,MA,PhD