Thesis (M.A.I.S.)--Oregon State University, 2008. / Printout. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 100-106). Also available on the World Wide Web.

The study of communication was born with the study of rhetoric, and scholars have been examining the creation and reception of messages for thousands of years. However, the term rhetoric often has negative connotations, as we hear people label some statement as “just rhetoric” or we hear them say, “The action doesn't match the rhetoric.” However, rhetoric is a style of communication that takes into account the effective use of both verbal and non-verbal languages, and it is one of the main ingredients in the day to day communication in organizations, healthcare organizations being no exception. It is virtually impossible to communicate without the use of rhetoric. This study focused on healthcare organizations because the delivery of healthcare is built on communication, and there is more to understand about the usage of language and organizational rhetoric in healthcare organizations. To these effects, the study examined communication in healthcare organizations and the perceived use of rhetoric among healthcare professionals; it explored how healthcare professionals perceive communication with their audiences, how the use of rhetoric, as perceived by healthcare professionals, affects communication in healthcare organizations and the contribution of rhetoric, as perceived by healthcare professionals, in motivating healthcare audience in healthcare organizations. The five canons of rhetoric were employed as a theoretical framework, and semi-structured interviews were used as tools for data collection. While contributing to existing literature on health and organizational communication, this study will also contribute in providing both government and private organizations insights into the use of rhetoric in professional communication with the hope of enhancing the quality of communication in the workplace.

Thesis (M.A.)--Indiana University, 2007. / Title from screen (viewed on January 9, 2008). Department of Communication Studies, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI). Advisor(s): Stuart M. Schrader, Kim D. White-Mills, Elizabeth M. Goering, Jane E. Schultz. Includes vitae. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 85-94).

Thesis (M.Ed.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Education, 1999. / Errata inserted facing title page. Bibliography: leaves 124-135.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Alliant International University, California School of Professional Psychology, San Francisco Bay, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 72-84).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--West Virginia University, 1999. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vii, 128 p. : ill. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 60-72).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Virginia Commonwealth University, 2010. / Prepared for: Dept.of Educational Studies. Title from title-page of electronic thesis. Bibliography: leaves 133-144

Thesis title: Health Professional-patient communication in relation to weight managementBackground: Global obesity levels have doubled since 1980 and are expected to rise. It is associated with key health risks such as heart disease, some cancers and osteoarthritis and hence has considerable economic consequences for health care resources. Key policy guidelines recommend that all health professionals (HPs) should discuss weight management with their patients making every contact count. However, we know HPs find discussions about weight challenging due to lack of time, training and skills. Knee Osteoarthritis (KO) and obesity are inextricably linked and together with a rise in obesity levels and growing numbers of older citizens rates of KO are set to escalate. As obesity is the key modifiable risk factor for KO, discussions about weight are paramount. This thesis explored this relationship further from the perspectives of patient and HPs, focusing on KO as an exemplar condition where there is scope for improved weight management. Methods: Utilising qualitative methods, three studies were undertaken. Firstly, a systematic review and thematic synthesis was conducted of published literature of physicians' views and experiences of discussing weight management within routine clinical consultations, not specific to KO. Secondly, HPs' experiences of discussing weight in consultations with KO patients through semi-structured interviews were conducted with 26 HPs. Interviews were audio recorded and analysed using TA. A final study recruited 25 overweight/obese patients with KO and investigated their experiences of talking about weight with HPs. Results: Overarching themes were identified across the studies. Firstly, HPs are pessimistic about patients' desire to lose weight and their capacity to help them. Several factors lead physicians and HPs to be reticent to accept responsibility for discussions about weight. Within routine consultations and between HPs and KO patients, weight was viewed as a sensitive topic. Both HPs and patients recognized the difficult cycle of pain, reduced mobility and weight gain. Patients with KO desire patient-centred (PC) care but, despite HPs recognizing its value, they do not receive it. Both physicians and HPs lack communication skills in weight management. Conclusions: The work undertaken in this thesis demonstrates that barriers preventing effective clinical interactions about weight identified in routine consultations still exist, even when two conditions such as KO and obesity are inextricably linked. Although HPs and patients hold similar understanding of these interrelationships and recognise the value of PC discussions, HPs struggle in effective behavior change talk. HPs expressed impatience with the efforts of their patients. To readdress this imbalance all consultations about weight should be PC. Both physicians and HPs were inadequately trained to discuss weight and patients' views supported this. HPs working with overweight patients should be trained in evidence-based behaviour change techniques and PC communication techniques to increase their confidence to support patients in weight management. Finally, health psychologists have the skills to both deliver and guide discussions about weight.

<p>Physicians must explain medical information to patients in a way that patients can understand, and physician use of analogies is one strategy that may help patients better understand health information. The present dissertation, guided by patient-centered communication, investigated whether the use of analogies by a physician within a medical encounter enhances participants’ objective understanding, perceived understanding, and perceptions of clarity regarding information about a health condition, and perceptions of the physician in areas of liking, similarity, satisfaction, and affective communication. The experiment consisted of eight conditions with a 2 (familiar/unfamiliar health condition) x 4 (no analogies, diagnosis analogies, treatment analogies, both diagnosis and treatment analogies) design, and the conditions varied by being exposed to the familiar or unfamiliar health issue first. An actor physician delivered a 1-2 minute video-recorded message, diagnosing the participants, serving as analogue patients, with the familiar or unfamiliar health issue. After watching the video and responding to the dependent variable measures based on their perceptions of the physician and video message, U.S. adult participants read a vignette of another physician diagnosing them with the other (familiar or unfamiliar) health issue, and answered the same dependent variable measures regarding the physician and vignette message. Open-ended questions sought to understand what participants remembered from the message and whether they recalled analogies in their retelling of the physician messages, whether they (dis)liked the analogies, what they (dis)liked about the physicians and whether these perceptions differed by analogy conditions, whether they remembered any analogies from their own clinicians, and in which medical situations they found provider analogies to be useful. Findings indicated when including health literacy as a covariate, analogies did not enhance perceptions of clarity, perceived understanding, or objective understanding. Regarding positive perceptions, analogies did not influence liking, similarity, satisfaction, or affective communication. There was no significant interaction between use of analogies and health issues, nor a difference in the effectiveness of the analogies based on whether they were used to describe diagnosis or treatment. Explanations containing analogies resulted in increased objective understanding for the vignette compared to the video format. When recalling the physician’s message, participants rarely recalled analogies, nor explicitly mentioned them as something they liked or disliked. However, some participants recalled clinician use of particular analogies, and most of them indicated they found clinician analogies to be useful, especially when describing complex health issues that are difficult for patients to understand. The dissertation results indicate that healthcare providers may want to use analogies when interacting with patients, which could potentially improve the doctor-patient relationship. </p>

Effective physician-patient communication is primary to successful medical consultation and encourages a collaborative interactional process between patient and doctor. Collaborative communication, rather than one-way authoritarian, physician-led medical interview, is significant in navigating difficult circumstances such as delivering "bad news" to patients diagnosed with cancer. Additionally, the potential psychological effects of breaking bad news in an abrupt and insensitive manner can be devastating and long-lasting for both the patient and his or her family. The topic of delivering unfavorable news to patients is an issue that many medical professionals find to be challenging and is now getting the attention of medical professionals in many countries, including the former Soviet Union (FSU) republics. The limited literature on communication skills in oncology in the FSU republics supports that the physician-patient communication style is perceived as significantly physician-oriented rather than patient-oriented. More specifically, the Soviet medical education system, as well as post-graduate medical education, has placed little to no emphasis on physician-patient communication training. Physician-oriented communication leads to patients being less forthcoming and open regarding their own feelings about being diagnosed with cancer, which may exacerbate the overall communication problem. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of the training program "Delivering Unfavorable News to Patients Diagnosed with Cancer" (Baile et al., 2000) conducted in Uzbekistan, one of the FSU republics. A total of 50 oncologists from the National Oncology Center of Uzbekistan (N = 50, n = 25 , n = 25 ) completed Self-Efficacy, Interpersonal skills (FIRO-B), Empathy (JSPE), and Physician Belief (PBS), and demographic instruments before, immediately after, and then two weeks after the training intervention. Results of MANOVA and bivariate statistical analyses revealed significant differences in self-efficacy, empathy, and PBS scores within the experimental group, but not within the control group, from pre-test to post-test. The follow-up data analysis suggested that participants maintained the level of change that occurred immediately after the training intervention.