INCREASING PATIENT COMMUNICATION THROUGH MODELING

Patients, particularly those in clinic settings, often interact passively with providers and rarely ask questions. Effective communication between patients and providers is important given the significant role patients have to play in successfully controlling chronic medical conditions. However, relatively little research exists that has examined patient information-seeking behaviors in the health care context. The specific aims of this study were to investigate how the videotaped presentation of a model seeking information from a patient educator and the type of information sought by the model affect: (a) patient information-seeking behaviors in a live patient education session and (b) patient knowledge and satisfaction. The modeling procedures used in this study were derived from Bandura's Social Learning Theory.;The research results indicated that exposure to a videotape of a model displaying information-seeking behaviors had a significant impact on patients' subsequent verbal behavior. Comparisons of the two modeling conditions revealed that the problem-raising model videotape, which was conceptualized as depicting a more assertive type of information-seeking behavior, was no more effective in increasing the number of patient verbal statements than was the question-asking model videotape. Furthermore, the latency period before patients' first statement was significantly briefer in the question-asking model condition than in the problem-solving model condition.;Relationships between patients' information-seeking behaviors and patient knowledge and satisfaction were also examined. Knowledge about hypertension was significantly increased in all three treatment groups. However, no significant relationship between patient information-seeking behavior and knowledge was found. Patients were highly satisfied with the patient educator during the live patient education session. Among subjects in the problem-raising condition increased verbal statements was associated with increased affective satisfaction. For subjects in the question-asking condition, shorter latencies were associated with increased affective satisfaction. No significant correlations were found for information-seeking behaviors and cognitive satisfaction. Practical applications and implications for future research are discussed.;A total of 150 male ambulatory care patients at the Durham Veterans Administration Medical Center with a diagnosis of essential hypertension served as subjects. Patients were randomly assigned to one of two experimental conditions (a question-asking model of problem-raising model condition) or to a control condition.