Effective communication is a cornerstone of successful interactions, whether it’s personal relationships or in a professional setting. That said, even the most well-intentioned communicators can fall victim to blind spots that hinder mutual understanding and connection.
As it relates to resolving a compliance matter, knowing how to interact with others in the organization can be the difference between getting push-back and obtaining buy-in. For that reason, being able to recognize and address these blind spots can be helpful for fostering clearer, more meaningful communication.
In this article, I’ll identify a few common communication blindspots and provide some helpful tips to improve your ability to navigate the politics of healthcare.
Communication Blind Spots
While not an all-inclusive list, below are four common communication blindspots that tend to exist in healthcare organizations. Getting a handle on each of these can help you avoid misunderstandings and potential conflict.
The Hierarchical Barrier
With any healthcare organization, there is some type of organizational structure consisting of employees, supervisors, managers, directors, senior leaders, and a governing board. With all these different layers, it is very easy for information to get filtered or distorted as it moves up or down the organizational hierarchy.
While there is a legitimate need for controlling certain information within the organization so as not to jeopardize the ability to make effective business decisions, there can be a downside. Gaps in understanding get created and details or feedback from some levels in the organization may not reach the decision-makers accurately.
Here are some tips that can help you navigate this blind spot:
Be mindful of need-to-know communication. If you’ve identified another individual or department that has a legitimate need-to-know, then ask if they have been made aware of the information, or if appropriate, take steps to close the knowledge gap.
When appropriate, encourage open communication channels with those who have a legitimate need-to-know.
Empathize with those who are not in-the-know. Ask yourself, “If I was in this person’s shoes, would I want to know this information?” Then be judicious about taking action. If you own the communication and it’s appropriate to be transparent, then proceed in letting the other person know. If you do not own the communication, then determine if it is appropriate to voice your concerns to your supervisor, or whomever owns the communication.
The Assumption Trap
“The Assumption Trap” occurs when one assumes that others in the organization share the same knowledge or perspective as the communicator. The risk here is that if the audience does not share the same knowledge or perspective, it leads to misunderstandings, which often leads to conflict.
Here are some tips that may help overcome this blindspot:
Actively listen, ask clarifying questions, and speak back information to ensure all parties understand the facts.
Challenge your assumptions and the assumptions of others.
Make sure that conclusions are based on facts and not personal opinions.
(Note: For more information on challenging assumptions, check out this companion article.)
The Siloed Communication
Ahhhh, the dreaded silo. You’re likely familiar with this little gem, but if not, this communication blindspot happens when departments or individuals fail to appropriately communicate with others (thus operating in isolation like a silo).
“The Siloed Communication” often leads to a lack of coordination and shared understanding about a particular matter. As a consequence, projects suffer from misalignment and healthcare leaders get surprised with unexpected information. For example, if an internal auditor conducts an audit and identifies payer refunds, but neglects to notify the CFO about the refunds—that’s siloed communication.
When it comes to the politics of healthcare, the problem with siloed communication is that it leads to frustration and creates the potential for conflict. Additionally, in the context of my internal audit example, taking such an approach signals deception—which renders moot—any efforts to establish the compliance program as something to be trusted.
If siloed communications is something you’d prefer to avoid, here are some tips that can help:
Promote collaboration and open communication during meetings and calls by identifying all interested parties that need to be aware of the content of a communication.
Follow the tips I mentioned above for “The Assumption Trap” to avoid presuming that an individual is aware of a communication.
As appropriate, validate with the communicator that an individual with a legitimate need-to-know is made aware of the content of a communication.
The Unclear Expectation
Finally, we come to “The Unclear Expectation”. Here, the concern with this blindspot is that lack of clarity leads others to not understand their roles, which leads to confusion or inefficient productivity. This can be especially true when the communication is coming from the compliance department and it relates to getting others to follow a regulation or internal policy.
Keep in mind that when you are communicating with a healthcare leader about a compliance issue, these folks likely will not be as knowledgeable about the rules as you are—so there is a knowledge gap. Be mindful of that potential and close the gap if you’ve identified one exists.
You also want to make sure you are clear about the compliance expectation. Here, my recommendation would be to ask yourself honestly, “Am I clear about what I’m expecting of others?” If you’re struggling with answering that question, then chances are you’ve either not critically thought through the matter, or there are some questions that still need to be answered.
(Note: A separate discussion on the importance of critical thinking skills in compliance can be found here.)
So how can you overcome this communication blind spot?
Here are some tips that may help:
Strive for clarity in your communication by avoiding jargon, ensuring conclusions are based on facts, and mapping out the communication from beginning to end in an outline.
Before you communicate with a healthcare leader about a compliance expectation, make sure you can answer this question from their perspective—”So what do you need from me?”
If someone else owns the communication and has not clearly communicated an expectation, speak up and let them know. (You can use the question mentioned in the bullet point directly above.)
Pulling it All Together
Communication blind spots play a significant role in the politics of healthcare. For example, workplace conflict often exists because of a lack of information or false assumptions based on limited information. Additionally, engaging in siloed communications, or ones involving “gotcha” moments, can damage your relationships with healthcare leaders and contradict your efforts to build a strong culture of compliance.
For those reasons, it is important to be mindful of communication blindspots and address them whenever possible through the above-noted tips. These can help avoid conflict, or at a minimum, prevent a little mess from turning into a big one.
If there is one piece of parting advice I can offer it is this—when it comes to communication blindspots, follow your own recommendation to employees for reporting a concern—if you see something, say something.
