Intro:
As a health professional, it is important to know how to communicate with patients in order to know what their needs are and thus treat them appropriately. In Australia, there are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples who are the First Australians (Wilson, Magarey, Jone, & Mackean, 2016). They often have strong connections to family, belief and community. While elder Indigenous people can be portrayed differently in different local communities, for example, higher status and knowledge (Wilson et al., 2016). Effective communication skills are essential to deliver care to these patients (Shahid, Finn & Thompson, 2009). The present article will cover two communication skills that health professionals need to utilise when treating elderly Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients and how these skills help the patients; non-verbal and verbal communication skills of body language and cultural respect, respectively.
Body Language:
A significant communication skill is body language. The first impression of health professionals plays a key …show more content…
In western culture it is normal for health professionals to look into patients’ eyes. However, different cultures have different views on the interpretation of eye contact. For instance, Chinese people avoid direct eye contact whilst Middle Eastern people can look into other’s eyes for a long period of time ( Verderber et al., 2010). In this case, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders in remote areas are very sensitive to eye contact as it can be misinterpreted as staring, more additionally judging ( Benelovent Society, 2013; Verderber et al., 2010). However, if health professionals avoid having eye contact with the patient, the patient can feel alienated and invisible ( Verderber et al., 2010). Hence, eye contact needs to be used appropriately according to culture sensitivity and time of utilisation (Verderber et al.,
As a health professional, it is important to know how to communicate with patients in order to know what their needs are and thus treat them appropriately. In Australia, there are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples who are the First Australians (Wilson, Magarey, Jone, & Mackean, 2016). They often have strong connections to family, belief and community. While elder Indigenous people can be portrayed differently in different local communities, for example, higher status and knowledge (Wilson et al., 2016). Effective communication skills are essential to deliver care to these patients (Shahid, Finn & Thompson, 2009). The present article will cover two communication skills that health professionals need to utilise when treating elderly Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients and how these skills help the patients; non-verbal and verbal communication skills of body language and cultural respect, respectively.
Body Language:
A significant communication skill is body language. The first impression of health professionals plays a key …show more content…
In western culture it is normal for health professionals to look into patients’ eyes. However, different cultures have different views on the interpretation of eye contact. For instance, Chinese people avoid direct eye contact whilst Middle Eastern people can look into other’s eyes for a long period of time ( Verderber et al., 2010). In this case, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders in remote areas are very sensitive to eye contact as it can be misinterpreted as staring, more additionally judging ( Benelovent Society, 2013; Verderber et al., 2010). However, if health professionals avoid having eye contact with the patient, the patient can feel alienated and invisible ( Verderber et al., 2010). Hence, eye contact needs to be used appropriately according to culture sensitivity and time of utilisation (Verderber et al.,