Collaborative Language
Following up on my last post, Collaborative Control, I realized that a source of conflict between physicians and hospital leaders may involve different meanings of the same word. Just as collaborate may mean to work together for some people, it may connote partnering with the enemy, being coopted, or going to the dark side for others.
Dr. David Hurley aptly commented on my last post that control is an illusion. We all can recall times that we thought we had a situation under control only to learn differently. In many instances, we humbly learn why our discipline is called “The Practice of Medicine.”
The word “control” may mean different things to administrators and physicians. Administrators may focus on financial control and ownership of assets like property, plant, and equipment. Physicians may focus on control of more fleeting assets like their time, efficiency, and effectiveness, which affect their reimbursement, time with family, and quality of life.
In my April 2007 ezine, Hot-Button Words to Avoid in Healthcare, I mentioned “but,” “just,” and “you.” Other inflammatory words include “always,” “never,” “I disagree,” and “why,” especially when asked repeatedly (Cohn KH, Allyn TR. When Physicians Compete with the Hospital, in Cohn KH. Better Communication for Better Care. 2005. Chicago: Health Administration Press, 20.)
Sam Horn (Horn, S. 1997. Tongue-Fu ! How to Deflect, Disarm, and Defuse Any Verbal Conflict. New York: St.Martin’s Press) suggested replacing, “I can’t because …” with “I’d be happy to … as soon as,” because it gives the other party a sense of hope and possibility rather than pessimism and finality. Using such language may help one enlist the support of the other party to complete tasks at hand.
What do you think?
- Can you recall times that language facilitated or hindered healthcare collaboration
- Is conflict inevitable in times of disruptive change
- What outcomes could be different if we substituted, “What if we …,” for, “If only they…”
As always, I welcome your input to improve healthcare collaboration.
Kenneth H. Cohn
Posted: in Building on Success | Comments: 1
Comments
Comment from walker thompson
Time: September 23, 2008, 8:35 am
I just stumbled upon this blog and it is now one of my favorites. Just this morning, I spent about an hour reading through some of your posts. While I’m new to your blog, I feel you share the same passion as we do about collaboration.
In regards your post: Collaborative Language, I do have a comment. Recently, I did an interview with Dr. Ray Miles, UC Berkeley and author of the book “Collaborative Entrepreneurship”. He suggests that building a community of trust and a feeling of equality (fairness) matter the most. In this way, people are more apt to share ideas and progress. I believe this starts with communication. Your suggestions here are spot on. Collaboration is a developed skill; perhaps not something we are born with. Thus, spending time developing the collaborative process is paramount to its success. Communication is key and whatever we can do to encourage it, then great.
Looking forward to following your blog…
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