Jerrold Tannenbaum
This article was published in the Western Australia Veterinary Surgeons Board newsletter and the NSW Board believes that this information is relevant in this state. A large proportion of the complaints received by the Boards are at least partially, due to a breakdown of communication between the veterinary practitioner and the client. This is reprinted from Veterinary Ethics by Jerrold Tannenbaum.
Perhaps the most important area of client relations with ethical overtones is that of communication with clients. Often a client’s problems or dissatisfaction can be avoided or solved quickly by clear, respectful communicating with a client; it can be possible to learn all the relevant facts that one must have in order to be able to decide on an approach that is medically and ethically proper.
A serious discipline studying veterinarian-client communications does not yet exist. Nevertheless, one can say with confidence that the following virtues in a veterinarian can nurture respectful and effective communication.
• Ability to listen: A veterinarian must open his mind to what the client is saying. He should not be too busy formulating his own statements when he should be listening to the client.
• Empathy: It is often necessary to place oneself in a client’s place. A client who is afraid of treating his pet with cancer chemotherapy might be transferring to the animal memories of cancer treatment of a friend or relative. A doctor must be able to understand why there might be such an impediment to the client’s understanding of the treatment options. The doctor, who sees illness every day, must be able to appreciate how strange and frightening the illness of an animal can be to an owner accustomed to its good health.
• Sympathy and compassion: A veterinarian must try to be sympathetic regarding a client’s worries or distress, even if he finds these concerns trivial or unreasonable.
• Patience: Veterinarians must understand that clients sometimes are unable or unwilling to comprehend the facts or treatment options. Clients must be given adequate time to appreciate the facts and make decisions.
• Sincerity: Few things are more offensive than a practitioner whose behaviour reflects insincerity, lack of interest or downright hostility.
• Clarity: A veterinarian must be able to speak clearly in a language that the client can understand, without treating the client in a condescending manner.
• Tactfulness: A practitioner must be able to be honest with clients while remaining tactful and courteous. Sometimes it may be necessary to make clear to the client that they are the reason the animal is ill or not recovering. This often can be done in a way that is an encouragement rather than a criticism.
• Professionalism in appearance and demeanor: Effective communication requires that the client be able to confide in the veterinarian and trust their information and recommendations. This will be impossible if the client believes the doctor is not concerned about their problems. Regard for personal appearance and demeanor is important in conveying to clients that one does care. Dirty or disheveled clothing, or coarse and disrespectful behavior toward or in the presence of clients, presents the impression that one does not care, and can create a wall between the veterinarian and the client that makes communication impossible.
