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A guide to virtual consultations

Telephone consultation tips

Virtual consultation tips

Health literacy consultation tips

Teach-back

module menu icon Teach-back

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module menu icon Teach-back

Teach-back

Teach-back isn't a test of the patient's knowledge, it's an indicator of how well you have explained the concept.

Plan your approach before the call by creating a bank of useful questions to ask. Use chunk and check: separate the information into manageable chunks and check their knowledge after each section.

Examples of teach-back style questioning5-8

  1. I want to make sure that I have explained things well to you; can you reiterate back to me what I have told you about your condition?

  2. I just want to make sure you know why I am calling you today; can you explain to me the reason for my call?

  3. I know your family may have questions about your medicine; what are you going to tell them when they ask?

  4. When I say you should take your medicine twice a day; what do I mean by that?

If completing an NMS, it may be useful to ask the following:

  • How much of your medicine have you been able to take so far?
  • What concerns do you have about your medicine?
  • What unexpected side-effects have you had with your condition?
  • What concerns have you had about your condition?
  • Do you have any concerns about your condition and Covid-19?
  • Have you managed to set any lifestyle changes?
  • Has Covid-19 impacted on your planned lifestyle changes?

REFERENCES

1. Roter DL. The outpatient medical encounter and elderly patients. Clin Geriatr Med.2000;16:95-107

2. Rost K, Roter D. Predictors of recall of medication regimens and recommendations for lifestyle change in elderly patients. Gerontologist. 1987;27:510-515.

3. Crane JA. Patient comprehension of doctor-patient communication on discharge from the emergency department. J Emerg Med. 1997;15:1-7.

4. Bertakis KD. The communication of information from physician to patient: a method for increasing patient retention and satisfaction. J Fam Pract. 1977;5:217-222.

5. Brega, A. G., Barnard, J., Mabachi, N. M., Weiss, B. D., DeWalt, D. A., Brach, C., West, D. R. (2015). The AHRQ health literacy universal precautions toolkit (2nd ed.). Retrieved from http://www.ahrq.gov/professionals/quality-patient-safety/quality-resources/tools/literacy-toolkit/healthlittoolkit2.html

6. Schillinger, D., Piette, J., Grumbach, K., Wang, F., Wilson, C., Daher, C., Bindman, A. B. (2003). Closing the loop: Physician communication with diabetic patients who have low health literacy. Archives of Internal Medicine, 163(1), 83-90.

7. Shekelle, P., Wachter, R., Pronovost, P., Schoelles, K., McDonald, K.,Dy, S.,Winters, B. (2013). Making health care safer II: An updated critical analysis of the evidence for patient safety practices. Comparative effectiveness review no. 211. Retrieved from Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality website: www.ahrq.gov/research/findings/evidence-based-reports/ptsafetyuptp.html

8. Van Galen. L., Car. J., Telephone consultations. BMJ 2018; 360 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.k1047 (Published 29 March 2018)

9. University of Oxford. Video Consultation guide, published March 2020 available at: https://bjgp.org/sites/default/files/advanced-pages/20Mar_COVID_VideoConsultations.pdf

All online references last accessed May 2021

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