Delivering remote consultations: Talking the talk

Abstract

Introduction There is an increasing affinity for remote health consultations (including telephone and virtual platforms), enabling new models of accessing services to evolve. Whilst many key skills are transferable from traditional to remote consultations, there is even greater emphasis on verbal communication skills during these interactions. Purpose This masterclass considers the communication skills required for delivering remote health care consultations, in particular focussing on: 12 interactional features in an opening sequence of a remote call; active listening; how to offer advice using the Ask-Offer-Ask framework; and subtleties in phrasing and prosody when closing a call that may indicate a level of satisfaction (or otherwise). Implications In planning for digitally-enabled services to become mainstream, the differences in communication between remote and face-to-face consultations must be recognised and embraced.

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“…Telemedicine refers to health services and information delivered or enhanced by the use of internet-related technologies. 24 , 25 When COVID-19 cases started to increase worldwide there was a high number of people going to the hospitals to get tested, which increased their risk of contagion. 26 , 27 As a preventive measure, dedicated phone lines were used to carry out initial symptom screening to determine if testing was necessary.…”

“…It is also important to mention the likely duration of the consultation and guide them to an appropriate physical location because they will release private information or might need to disrobe as part of the examination. 24 , 39 All these considerations are important because the patients might be feeling anxious about their health problems and because they are unfamiliar with the technology.…”

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“…The primary issue concerning information systems and technology is data security and privacy, especially in the cases of sensitive medical information 58 . Ontario currently uses platforms such as ClinicalConnect and ConnectingOntario to share sensitive patient information with health care professionals across the continuum of care 59 .…”