Sensitive communication with owners

Anyone who phones or emails owners with clinical updates.

• ◆Plan and pace a difficult conversation
• ◆Use clear, jargon-free clinical language
• ◆Hold silence without filling it
• ◆Document the discussion contemporaneously

1. 01.

   Setting up the call

   Time, place, who is present, what's in front of you.

   • ·Booking the call — time, place, who attends on each end
   • ·The pre-call brief: facts, decisions sought, possible outcomes
   • ·What to have in front of you (records, weights, photos)
   • ·Setting expectations at the very start of the call
2. 02.

   Words that land

   Plain English for medical realities.

   • ·Replacing veterinary jargon with plain English — a working glossary
   • ·Naming likelihood without false precision
   • ·Holding silence — the three-second rule
   • ·Inviting questions in a way that gets real ones
3. 03.

   After the call

   Notes, follow-up, looking after yourself.

   • ·Contemporaneous notes — format and storage
   • ·Follow-up email within two hours: what to include
   • ·Looking after the staff member who made the call
   • ·Escalation to vet or manager when needed

Bring a recent difficult conversation in mind (anonymised); we use it in a paired exercise.

Submit two anonymised written call notes within 14 days; reviewed with private feedback.

• §Buckman, 'How to Break Bad News: a guide for healthcare professionals' (key chapters)
• §AVMA 'Communication for veterinary teams' core skills
• §Cruse Bereavement Care — communication resources