4 Stages of Client Communication

A Model for Effective Doctor–Client and Staff–Client Communication...
As we’ve seen, to be effective with their clients, veterinary practitioners and health care team members must first discover their own preferred style of communication. Next, they need to determine what their patients prefer. Then, they adjust their approach, if necessary, to match those client preferences. This three-step approach can be readily applied at each stage of a model for health care communication developed by Judy Allen and Susan A. Brock.

According to Allen and Brock, what transpires during doctor-client and staff-client communication can be analyzed as a four-stage process:

1. Initiating the interaction
2. Investigating needs
3. Suggesting action
4. Next steps or closing.

Let’s look at each of the stages...

Stage 1: Initiating the Interaction
At the start of the interaction, the preferences that likely make the most difference are Extraversion and Introver¬sion. Extraverts tend to talk first, while Introverts are more likely to listen.

Clients are likely to be most at ease when they feel the health care practitioner is tuned in to them on this dimension. Similar to the tips outlined in the previous “Adjust Your Approach” section, here are some communication strategies to try during this stage of the interaction:

If your client prefers Extraversion
✦ In your own way, show energy and animation in your face, voice, and body.
✦ Allow enough time for the client to talk it out.
✦ Ask open-ended questions, then listen for and summarize the main points as they emerge.

If your client prefers Introversion
✦ Use calm body movements.
✦ Allow for and use a slower verbal pace to allow for the client to think things through.
✦ Listen after asking a question and don’t fill the pauses.

According to MBTI estimates provided by the Center for Applications of Psychological Type, 45%–53% of the general U.S. population prefer Extraversion, while 47%–55% prefer Introversion.

Stages 2 & 3: Investigating Needs and Suggesting Action
As the exchange proceeds, the client will show a preference for how information is taken in and how decisions are made. Sensing and Intuition are the preferences used for taking in information. Some patients want facts and specifics (Sensing). Others want to know the wider options and possibilities (Intuition). Thinking and Feeling are the preferences used for making decisions. Clients with a preference for Thinking may first weigh the logical options, while those with a Feeling preference may first consider the personal impact of decisions.

How clients prefer others to communicate with them during stages 2 and 3 depends most on their particular combination of function pairs—Sensing/Intuition and Thinking/Feeling.

The function pairs—ST, SF, NF, and NT—are aptly named because they say so much about how people prefer to func¬tion in life. They also play a key role in determining the focus of the information and how we interact when commu¬nicating. On the other hand, the Extraversion/Introversion and the Judging/Perceiving dimensions affect the pace of the interaction and the approach to concluding it.
 

How Can You Identify Clients with Preferences for ST, SF, NF, and NT?
What do each of these preference pairs looks like? Here are some behavior cues to watch for that can tip you off to your client’s preferred way of gathering information and making decisions.

Also included is the estimated prevalence of each of the functional pairs in the U.S. population, which provides interesting insight into the preferences that clients are most likely to display.

For a review of the four MBTI function pairs, how they affect practice team dynamics, and tips for communicating with colleagues and coworkers with differing function pairs, refer to section 16 in MBTI “Type and Teams” Module 3.

SF: Specifics/Impact on People (estimated 43% of the U.S. population)
✢ Seeks personalized service, a caring relationship
✢ Asks for facts rather than theory
✢ Wants a warm and friendly approach
✢ Interested in whatever worked for others
✢ How they might prefer to hear bad news:
-“The blunt way the doctor broke the news made it so much worse to bear; what helped was how the technician actually related to me as a person.”
-“The worst thing was hearing the news alone, I wished my partner was with me. But it really helped me to have the doctor’s full concentration, and not to be hurried so I could get all my questions answered.”

NT: Big Picture/Logical Implications (estimated to be 10% of the U.S. population)
✢ Asks for logical options
✢ Tests the health care providers competence
✢ Interested in cutting-edge methods
✢ How they might prefer to hear bad news:
- “I just wanted the truth, an understanding of the whole situation, the prognosis and what options there are.”
- “If I have a serious decision to make that might affect my pet’s life, I want to be sure I am dealing with someone who knows what is going on, not an amateur.”

ST: Specifics/Logical Implications (estimated 30% of the U.S. population)
✢ Values factual information
✢ Gives the facts in a logical order
✢ Has a practical, “let’s get the task done” approach
✢ Interested in tried and trusted methods with data-back-up
✢ How they might prefer to hear bad news:
-“I don’t want to hear all sorts of irrelevant stuff, I just want the straightforward facts, no fuzzy prelude.”
-“When my last pet died, they kept asking me how I felt. It felt intrusive and wasn’t helpful. Please don’t expect me to open up before I know you are trustworthy.”

NF: Big Picture/Impact on People (estimated to be 17% of the U.S. population)
✢ Sees their situation as unique
✢ Needs to be valued as a person
✢ Interested in new methods of treatment and perhaps non-traditional approaches
✢ How they might prefer to hear bad news :
-“I hated being treated like a number, just another person with a sick cat. I really wanted to have more time to talk about different treatment options.”
-“I immediately thought of my family, especially the kids, and how they would take the news.”
 

According to MBTI estimates provided by the Center for Applications of Psychological Type:
✶ 66% to 74% of the general U.S. population prefers Sensing, while 26%–34% prefers Intuition
✶ 40% to 50% of people prefer Thinking, while 50% to 60% prefer Feeling.

Note that the Thinking/Feeling dichotomy is the only MBTI preference pair where a significant gender bias is evident. While 65% to 76% of females prefer Feeling, only 33% to 45% of males assess with a Feeling preference.

So, the data suggest that, if veterinary clients are simply a subset of the general U.S. population, then there is a 66% to 74% likelihood that any random client would have a prefer¬ence for Sensing and up to a 60% likelihood of a client prefer¬ring Feeling, unless the client is female in which case there is a 65% to 76% likelihood that she has a Feeling preference.

What does this data mean? If you play the odds, you can guess that many clients’ preferred communication styles will be represented by the SF function pair. However, you’ll still want to “tune in” to each individual client and be prepared to adapt to their communication needs in the moment.