Communication is a clinical skill (Part 3)

Asking owners open-ended questions, especially at the beginning of a consultation, is extremely important to improve not just communication in general, but also to ensure the veterinary practitioner takes the animal’s history effectively.

Open questions

In thinking about the first part of the veterinarian-client interaction it’s important to consider three objectives. First, we want to know what the client wants to discuss, then add anything that the veterinarian wants to add, and plan with the client how to approach the rest of the consultation. The second objective involves establishing initial rapport and ensuring that the client feels like she is part of the process going forward. The third objective is to gauge how the client and the patient are doing given the circumstances. You might be wondering how best to address all three objectives given the need to be efficient. What we know from research to date is that vet practitioners tend to shy away from open-ended questions at the beginning of the consultation in favor of asking a series of closed questions:

• “Is he eating?”
• “Is he drinking?”
• “Is her pee and poop normal?”
• “Did you give her the medication?”
• “Are you getting her out for a walk?”
• “Did you make a decision?”

Research also reports that on average, veterinarians interrupt clients within 15.3 seconds of them starting to talk ( 1 ) and tell their story. [...]