Summarising and closing the consultation
Summarising and closing the consultation
When you speak to patients there is often a lot of information provided. As you move to close your consultation, patients will find it helpful if you summarise the most important information you have shared.
You can use the ‘chunk and check’ technique to separate key points and verify understanding7
To use the chunk and check technique:
Break down the information that you have discussed and that you need the patient to understand into smaller more manageable chunks, rather than providing it all at once.
In between each 'chunk' of information, check at appropriate moments for understanding before moving on to provide opportunities for questions.
If you are giving medicine dosing information you can refer to the information on the packaging, and use the ‘patient information leaflet’ to support you if appropriate
Clearly state any next steps and thank the patient for their time
Applying these ideas to a conversation may seem daunting at first, but they don’t all need to be used at once.
Practise the approaches you’ve learned to help your patients get the most out of their over-the-counter conversations
To discover more useful resources to help you in the pharmacy go to: https://www.viatrisconnect.co.uk/