Proven Strategies to Deal with an Angry Patient by Phone or In-person

Event Materials (Key Required)

Course Description

Handling an angry patient in healthcare is important because it allows for a continued therapeutic relationship, prevents escalation of the situation, maintains patient trust, and ultimately leads to better health outcomes by ensuring treatment can be administered effectively and without disruption. This webinar will help you to know and understand the proven phone or in-person communication strategies on how to quickly identify why a patient is really angry and how to defuse the situation to make the situation stabilized. Neglecting an angry patient could result in them leaving care, not following treatment plans, and potentially harming themselves or others. Dealing effectively with an angry patient over the phone requires excellent communication and listening skills to resolve the situation peacefully and successfully.

Learning Objectives

• Discuss why patients become angry and process improvements
• Learn 10 dynamics of how to deal with an angry patient effectively
• Understand the difference between active listening and reflective listening
• Explore the concept of the wounded child to increase your patience
• Review key verbal statement to build bridges and mutual understanding
• Learn 5 de-escalation techniques to diffuse a tense conversation
• Understand the impact of words, tone of voice and body language

Areas Covered in the Session

• Understanding Depth of the problem
• Identifying the exact reason why patient is angry
• Contributing factors in healthcare
• The dynamic of unmet expectations
• Assessing the person - warning signs
• Active listening and reflective listening
• Phone communication skills set to defuse angry patient
• In-person communication skills set to defuse angry patient
• Voluntary Compliance, cooperation and collaboration
• Planning: what could happen and what would I do?
• Practicing: role play or running scenarios and responses through your head
• Debriefing: provides objective insights and may lead to improvement and shared learning
• Live Q&A Session

Suggested Attendees

• Doctors
• Nurses
• Physician Assistants
• Nursing Assistants
• Hospital Administrators
• Front Desk team members
• Safety and Security Officers
• Medical Officers
• Practice Managers
• Any healthcare worker that has direct access to a patient

About the Presenter

Merikay Hunt, MS, is a nationally awarded speaker, executive coach and provides customized training and development programs to organizations and associations throughout the United States, having experience over 25 year. Merikay is the founder of Coach MKay Companies, LLC. She served as an adjunct hospital chaplain for three years and was Director of Patient and Family Experience for High Point Regional Health System. She was featured in the March 2024 issue of Women's Journal as one of the top 15 Trailblazers in the coaching Industry across the United States. Merikay’s educational background includes: B.A. from UNC-Chapel Hill, Master Degree of Science from NC A&T State University in human resource counseling. She is a former Director of Patient and Family Experience for a NC Hospital and a multi-course certified instructor for Dale Carnegie Training. She is the recipient of the National Spotlight on Speaking Award with the Speakers Consultant Network and has been a member of the National Society of Certified Healthcare Business Consultants (NSCHBC) for over 20 years.

Additional Information

After Registration: You will receive an email with login information and handouts (presentation slides) that you can print and share with all participants at your location.

System Requirement:

• Internet Speed: Preferably above 1 MBPS
• Headset: Any decent headset and microphone which can be used to talk and hear clearly

Live Course Cancellation Policy: If for any reason Skillacquire need to cancel this program, Skillacquire will notify participants by email of the cancellation no less than 24 hours prior to the expected start time.

Can’t Listen Live? No problem. You can get access to an On-Demand webinar. Use it as a training tool at your convenience.

For more information, you can reach out to the below contact:

Toll-Free No: 1-302-444-0162

Email: care@skillacquire.com 

This is a Live Virtual session.

A new way of immersive learning that allows you to engage live with our instructor and peers providing you with the flexibility to juggle the new work-life balance.

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