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10 Easy Ways to Improve Your Bedside Manner

Emma Wilkinson reveals how you can boost your counseling and interpersonal skills, by bearing in mind a few rules when dealing with patients.

It doesn’t have to be this hard – we promise!

Developing a good ‘bedside manner’ is just as important as improving clinical skills in expanding your role. Whether it’s dealing with the embarrassing medical complaint, the overly nervous teenager, the anxious new mother or the 30-year-old man who would rather be anywhere else but in the pharmacy, getting patients to open up, trust you and give you the information you need is vital for providing a high level of service.

Good interpersonal skills will help nurses – and their patients – get the most out of delicate services such as emergency contraception, chlamydia screening and erectile dysfunction advice. It will mean patients get exactly what they came in for, and it will keep them healthy – so here’s how you do it.

#1: Focus →

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