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Read the Room
(Non-Verbal Cues)

You've probably said "It's ok" (even when it's not really) to avoid conflict or because you don't want to sound like a complainer. Patients do the same thing with us. Their words might say one thing, but their face, posture, and hands are telling a different story completely; their body is talking. This upSKILL walks through how to pick up on what someone may not be saying, but is something you don't want to miss. 
   7:44 Watch Time [Week 20 from the Weekly upSKILL series]
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 Real Help 

Solve these 'people problems'

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For upSKILLers:

  • Missing the moment when a patient or person says one thing, but their face and posture say otherwise
  • Moving on to the next task or moment before noticing non-verbal 'discomfort'
  • Assuming a patient's discomfort is about you when it might be nerves, a rough morning, or something totally unrelated
  • Wanting to catch what patients can't quite put into words
  • Using the same read on body language with teammates, family, and people in your personal life too

For Leaders:

  • Team members completing the task, the checkout, the exam, the call, without ever noticing the patient wasn't really satisfied
  • Patients leaving quietly unhappy because nobody caught the nonverbal signs before they walked out the door
  • Inconsistent care experiences because reading body language is left to instinct instead of being a trained skill
  • Coaching team members to pivot from hard skills to soft skills the moment their radar goes off
  • Catching dissatisfaction before patients leave and post a negative review online
  • Creating a team culture where noticing discomfort before a patient voices a concern is a standard of excellence
 Data 

It's science

Communication research from psychologist Albert Mehrabian found that most of the emotional meaning in an interaction comes through tone and body language, not the words themselves.(1)
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That means a patient might say one thing, but it's important not to miss the real story that their face and posture might be telling you.
Research on facial expression shows that emotions like discomfort, worry, and hesitation show up on the face in consistent, recognizable ways, things like tense brows, pursed lips, or a tucked chin.(2)
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We don't need a psychology degree to catch these; we just need to be watching.
Research on the nervous system's threat detection shows our bodies are constantly scanning for cues of safety before we even process what's being said.(3)
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Patients are subconsciously reading us the exact same way we're learning to read them.
 Note 

From The Experts

"The good news is most of the time real value is in simply showing that we notice and care, and that makes the patient feel more comfortable, not necessarily always fixing it."
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- Christine & Lauren, The Patient Whisperers
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 SERIES 

This is adapted from Weekly: Mastering Soft Skills

by The Patient Whisperers:
Soft skills that make work and life better.
For everyone who works with patients - or interacts with humans.

8 minutes each week

quick bites, by The Patient Whisperers.

Soft skills are people skills

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connect with anyone  
feel confident in any situation  
stay centered in difficult encounters  

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Ralph Chu, MD
CEO & Chief Medical Officer
Chu Vision Institute

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 WHO 

Meet the experts

The Patient Whisperers
Christine Scarlett
& Lauren Weaver
Former practice leaders leading change by bringing relational intelligence, soft skills + emotional connection into healthcare as authors, speakers, and upSKILL instructors. 
Get to know them here or connect on social media:
Christine Scarlett
Former CMO
& Director of Patient Experience
From counseling patients, to Director of Patient Experience, to CMO, Christine's worn nearly every 'hat' in a healthcare practice. The driving force? Her love for people... creating exceptional patient experiences and empowering those who serve them.
Lauren Weaver
Former
Director of Brand Development
Bringing her PR, branding, social media influencer status, and love of storytelling with her, Lauren turned how we market and build a brand for ourselves in healthcare upside down by redefining how we connect with our patients, both in practice and online.
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(1) Mehrabian, A. (1971). Silent Messages. (2) Ekman, P., & Friesen, W. V. (1975). Unmasking the Face. (3) Porges, S. W. (2004). "Neuroception: A Subconscious System for Detecting Threat and Safety." Zero to Three.