Say Yes to the Gifts of Improv: Health Profession & Professional Health | Mike Smith, MD | TEDxOmaha

TL;DR

Discover how practicing improv has helped a physician improve communication skills and enhance patient care, leading to professional growth and personal fulfillment.

Transcript

[Applause] I was already a practicing physician when I started taking improv classes in fact I had zero theater experience when my wife got me introductory improv lessons for Christmas thank God I did because of all the life that has happened to both me and to society since then when I started I didn't know how my career was going to grow but impro... Read More

Key Insights

• 🏛️ Improv skills, such as building on ideas, collaboration, and adapting to uncertainty, can greatly enhance communication in healthcare.
• 🤪 Going outside of one's comfort zone is essential for growth and development in communication skills.
• 🥺 Recognizing and addressing communication blind spots through improv training can lead to improved patient satisfaction and better professional performance.
• 👻 Improv training creates a safe space for learning from mistakes and allows healthcare professionals to embrace vulnerability and empathy.
• ❓ Deliberate practice, feedback, and continuous skill development are crucial for healthcare professionals to improve their communication.
• 🥺 Positive communication principles in healthcare training often lack continuous skill development, leading to performance plateaus or declines over time.
• 😨 Finding common ground and embracing the perspectives and ideas of patients and colleagues can strengthen relationships and improve patient care.

Questions & Answers

Q: How did the physician apply improv skills to their work in the hospital?

The physician practiced exercises from their improv class, such as the "three line opener," to establish immediate common ground and improve communication with patients, alleviating their anxiety and improving patient satisfaction.

Q: How did the physician's improv training influence their approach to communication in healthcare?

The physician realized that they had developed bad communication habits, prioritizing showcasing their intelligence rather than finding common ground. Improv training helped them explore these blind spots and improve their communication skills in a safe environment.

Q: How did the physician's family experiences with healthcare affect their perspective on communication?

Witnessing instances of harm caused by poor communication in healthcare, such as insensitive lab result delivery, motivated the physician to teach improv workshops to other healthcare professionals. They wanted to address blind spots and improve communication to avoid causing harm to patients and their families.

Q: How did the physician's improv workshops impact other healthcare professionals?

The physician's workshops, which were initially marketed as communication workshops rather than improv workshops, sold out with waiting lists. Participants from various roles, including those in the business office, found the training relevant and impactful for their professional growth.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The narrator, a practicing physician, started taking improv classes and found it to be a source of laughter and escape.

• They later applied improv principles to their work in the hospital, realizing its positive impact on patient communication.

• Improv training helped the physician recognize their own communication blind spots and improve patient satisfaction scores.