Helping Caregivers With Difficult Conversations

Sometimes in the silences
Originally uploaded by What is in us

Contentious conversations about healthcare. As the healthcare reform debate has heated up in recent months, the acrimony barometer has skyrocketed. That's why I recently read with great interest about the Public Conversations Project. This nonprofit has been facilitating conversations on controversial subjects (think abortion, the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, etc.) for 20 years. On April 7, in partnership with the Harvard School of Public Health, they're offering a free workshop to anyone involved in health care.

The workshop takes place in the Boston area and will cover the "use of carefully crafted questions...ways to encourage deep listening, respectful speaking, genuine curiosity and collaboration." Hmmm...sounds like a workshop a lot of people could benefit from, including a few Senators and Congressman I know.

Improving communication is one important focus of Schwartz Center Rounds, a program now taking place at 186 facilities across the country. Rounds bring together a group of multidisciplinary caregivers to delve into the emotional challenges of patient care. In a profession where the stakes for failed communication are so high, we need more programs like Rounds and the Public Conversations Project.