Effective Communication With Elderly Patients: 5 Best Practices

Adults over the age of 85 use healthcare services more frequently than any other age group, yet many providers are unaware of age-related communication challenges elderly patients experience when sharing and receiving information. Without tailoring communication strategies to meet the needs of older individuals, healthcare providers risk providing substandard care.

Effective communication with elderly patients can help facilities optimize health outcomes, reduce readmission rates, and improve patient satisfaction scores. In this article, we explain why communicating with the elderly can be challenging, address the importance of accurately disseminating healthcare information, and provide five strategies to improve communication with older patients at your facility.

What Is the Importance of Communication Among the Elderly?

Interpersonal communication is an important tool for people of all ages and is used to connect individuals with the environment around them. As physical and social activity declines with age, older adults are at an increased risk for loneliness, isolation, and depression. Regular communication and socialization can help them to lead full and satisfying lives.

Senior citizens may require additional support to complete activities of daily living. This makes it all the more crucial that they’re able to communicate requests for physical assistance, support, and advocacy to ensure their care needs are met.

What Makes Communication Difficult for Older Adults?

Communicating can be challenging and frustrating for elderly patients. Symptoms of normal aging, chronic disease, and physical disability often make it difficult to share and receive information. As adults age, they often experience:

• Declining sensory, cognitive, and physical abilities
• Changes in voice loudness, pitch, tremor, and speaking rate
• Poor recall and short-term memory

Nurses and other healthcare providers are responsible for recognizing these changes and adapting conversational styles and techniques to meet the needs of older patients. Good general communication techniques with the elderly include:

• Adjusting for hearing and visual deficits
• Appropriately timing important or sensitive conversations
• Frequently asking to make sure the patient understands what is being said

Effective communication with elderly patients provides them with the dignity and respect they deserve. It also promotes better health management to help them live longer and healthier lives. Understanding the physical and cognitive limitations of elderly individuals can help healthcare staff develop age-specific communication approaches to provide safer and higher-quality care.

Why Should Healthcare Facilities Address Elderly Communication Problems to Improve Care?

High-quality communication strengthens patient-provider relationships, helps develop trust, and improves patient satisfaction. Building a good rapport with senior patients boosts their self-esteem and confidence and reduces anxiety and depression.

Effective communication with elderly patients not only benefits their emotional health, but also promotes physical wellbeing and reduces medical errors. Up to 36% of healthcare mistakes involving elderly patients occur due to poor communication among patients, their families, and the healthcare staff.

Making a connection with elderly patients is important for their emotional and physical wellbeing and lets them know that healthcare providers are willing to support them and advocate for their wishes. By tailoring communication strategies to individual patient needs, healthcare staff can better support elderly individuals in living happy and healthy lives.

5 Strategies for Effective Communication With Elderly Patients

When exploring how to communicate with adults effectively, healthcare facilities can use the following five techniques to ensure information is communicated in an accurate and timely manner.

1. Share Important Information Sitting Face-to-Face

Older adults with hearing and vision deficits have a difficult time communicating over the phone, on messaging platforms, and via email. Research suggests that elderly patients receive information best when sitting face-to-face.

Minimize visual and auditory distractions and limit interruptions to ensure that information is received and processed appropriately. Utilizing non-verbal communication with elderly patients can help convey messages, emotions, and nuances that may otherwise be missed.

2. Speak Slowly and Give Extra Time to Process Information

Communicating with elderly individuals requires patience and compassion. They may need messages to be spoken slower or louder than normal and often ask for information to be repeated.

Healthcare providers can feel rushed, and may get frustrated when they have to repeat information or explain instructions that may seem obvious. Make sure to be respectful and speak with a kind, conversational tone. Older adults don’t lack intelligence, they just need extra time to process information.

3. Provide Written Directions and Instructions

Elderly patients appreciate when healthcare providers share written information and guidance with verbal instruction. This allows them to review key information in the future and clarify directives like:

• The name of an important medication
• The time of a scheduled procedure
• The location of the hospital where the treatment will take place

Provide patients with a paper copy of these directions prior to completing the appointment and email an extra copy in the event that the paperwork is lost. Make sure that the font is large enough to read with any visual deficits and be sure to provide the information in the patient’s primary language.

4. Involve Family Members and Caregivers in Important Conversations

Involving family members in the caregiving process reduces hospital readmission rates by 25%. Elderly patients who feel that their care is provided in a team-centered approach have higher motivation and willingness to participate in health maintenance and prevention.

Inform family and caregivers of the timing of appointments and include them on phone or video conferences. Allow visitors and family members to visit with the patient throughout the day and encourage them to participate in training or teaching sessions with the patient.

5. Allow Time for Questions or Concerns

During important discussions, healthcare providers should summarize what they’ve explained and allow elderly patients to ask questions. Closed-loop communication helps ensure that messages are heard and understood appropriately.

Older adults may feel rude interrupting instructions or directions with a question or comment. Allowing time at the end of the conversation gives them the opportunity to express themselves without fear or anxiety.

Find More Ways to Improve Safety and Health Outcomes for Elderly Patients

Effective communication with elderly patients helps boost patient satisfaction scores and reduce costly healthcare mistakes. Don’t miss out on the latest healthcare insights; subscribe to our free IntelyCare newsletter to ensure your care practices are current and effective.