Summary of Week 3

This last week we learned about the communication barriers patients might have to deal with and which can lead to worse health outcomes, especially to those with limited health literacy.

This barriers can come from the healthcare professional or the healthcare system, and we learned about ways to lower those barriers like using plain language to avoid the problem with jargon, asking open-ended questions to enhance communication with patients, encouraging patients to also ask questions to healthcare professionals and how to check for understanding using the chunk-and-check and teach-back methods.

The use of those techniques can help patients, especially those with limited health literacy, make better decisions about their health.