Word length: 2500 words

Weighting: 50%

How is this assessment connected to the learning outcomes?

This assessment has been designed to test your understanding of the basic concepts of effective interprofessional communication in healthcare contexts. The assessment relates to learning outcomes 1-5:

1. review critically and demonstrate effective interpersonal and communication skills with clients, families and significant others;
2. examine critically and demonstrate effective interpersonal communication skills with other professionals and professional organisations;
3. analyse critically and demonstrate effective inter-professional teamwork and collaboration skills;
4. reflect critically on their own personal communication style and appreciate how it affects professional communication; and
5. analyse and apply professional responsibility and accountability for effective communication in healthcare contexts.

Case study scenario

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ey557BaRe14

Make sure you read all of the information listed below so that you know exactly what this assignment entails. Not reading the instructions is one of the main reasons why students lose marks.

1. Watch the video.
2. Imagine that you are the client in the interaction. 
3. This assignment requires you to write an essay about the ‘science’ of effective interprofessional communication.
4. Research the importance of effective interprofessional communication to client safety. You may choose to start by logging into the UNE library website and searching the library catalogue and databases for journals and books about interprofessional communication.
5. Make sure you base the contents of your essay on information extracted from scholarly journals and books (i.e. do not rely on websites, newspaper articles, or your personal experience).
6. Make sure in your essay you:

• Discuss the importance of good interpersonal communication to clients, families and significant others.
• Analyse the situation presented in the video from the point of view of the client, professionals and professional organisation.
• Analyse and comment on the effectiveness of the inter-professional team and their collaboration skills. 
• Identify the ‘barriers to communication’ from the point of view of the client, professionals and professional organisation.
• Discuss how the outcome for the client in the video could be improved by drawing on information from the interprofessional communication literature.

An explanation for each dot point is provided below: (this the questions that should answer in the assignment)

• Discuss the importance of good interpersonal communication to clients, families and significant others.

Why is it important that professionals who are part of the healthcare team communicate effectively with clients, families and significant others? What is the impact/outcome for clients, families and significant others if professionals cannot communicate effectively? What does the literature say?

• Analyse the situation presented in the video from the point of view of the client, professionals and professional organisation.

What do you think is happening in the video? Is this something that happens often in healthcare?  Do you think what is happening in the video in the long run is going to produce a positive outcome for the client, professionals and professional organisation?  Why? What does the literature say?

• Analyse and comment on the effectiveness of the inter-professional team and their collaboration skills. 

Is the health team in the video working together effectively? Is the team in the video collaborating with one another? What does the literature say about inter-professional teamwork and collaboration?

• Identify the ‘barriers to communication’ from the point of view of the client, professionals and professional organisation.

What are barriers to communication? What are the barriers to communication in healthcare for the client, professionals and organization? What does the literature say? How many of the barriers to communication reported in the literature can you identify in the video for the client? Professionals? Organization?

• Discuss how the outcome for the client in the video could be improved by drawing on information from the interprofessional communication literature.

This is where you need to tell me how the healthcare team can do things better in order to improve the outcome for the client. What needs to change as far as this team is concerned? What are the important things about interprofessional communication that this team needs to pay more attention to?  Make sure that any recommendation you make is supported by the effective communication literature and not just something you think is important.

Presenting

This assignment should be a well planned and well presented essay.

• It will need an introduction that explains the purpose of the essay and how it is organised.
• Write in complete sentences (i.e. do not use dot points). However, if you think a summary will enhance the contents of your essay you can insert the information into a Table rather than use dot points. If you do insert a Table please make sure the Table adheres to APA style.
• A good way to plan your essay and ensure you have followed the instructions is to use the dot points listed above in the instructions as sub-headings.
• Your essay will need an introduction that acts as a road map for the reader and a conclusion that summarises the main points discussed in the essay.
• You must use complete sentences at all times. Please note: A paragraph contains more than one sentence and deals with only one topic. Do not try to put too little or too much information into a paragraph because it is confusing for the reader.
• Pay attention to spelling, grammar and punctuation.
• The writing style in an essay is more formal than verbal speech. Try not to write as you would speak.
• The essay must be written in the third person. The word “I” is not used when writing in the third person.
• Avoid starting a sentence with a reference and instead write as if you were an expert by placing the reference at the end of the sentence in brackets. A reference supports what you are saying, it should not be the main feature of a sentence. For example: Higgs (2012) states that communication is very important to client safety can be written as: Communication is very important to client safety (Higgs, 2012).

Referencing

You must use the APA referencing system.

In-text referencing

Every statement of fact in an essay must be supported by an in-text reference. Omitting in-text references is a form of “intellectual theft” and will not be tolerated.

For this unit page numbers are not required for in-text references unless providing a direct quote. For example: Communication is important to client safety (Higgs, 2012). “Communication is important to client safety” (Higgs, 2012, p.28).

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