The Scottish Academy of Breast Imaging (SABI) hosted a Communication Skills Workshop Day based on the Know, Encourage, Warmth (KEW) model.
SABI – which is based in Glasgow – delivers all mammography training for Scotland. The workshop was attended by practitioners working in the Scottish Breast Screening Programme (SBSP) and the Scottish Symptomatic Breast Service.
The KEW model can be used across healthcare and was designed to help health workers deliver empathetic communication towards those receiving treatment.
To set up the training day, SABI leadSimon Holmesreached out to Josie Cameron, a breast advanced radiographer from the Edinburgh Cancer Centre. Josie helped to develop the KEW model with a clinical psychologist and a health psychologist.
What did the workshop consist of?
Throughout the day, attendees were advised on how to deal with patient concerns about diagnosis and treatment, as well as how to manage difficult conversations. There was also a focus on supporting empathetic conversations with staff on the topics of wellbeing and peer support, in order to improve their professional relationships and enhance staff morale.
A session on how to break bad news was also requested by SBSP staff. This allowed for further focus on staff wellbeing and the realities of the patient pathway.
Lindsey Leen, a consultant radiographer who attended the workshop, praised how radiographers were centred during the day’s discussion.
She said: “As part of the group discussion, it was highlighted that radiographers are the first person that patients with previous cancers see during their imaging-led follow-up, emphasising why a focus on communication training is so important.”
Other feedback lauded how the workshop allowed attendees to share their experiences with one another and learn how to improve on their person-centred approach to communication.
The KEW workshop is endorsed by CPD Now. Going forward, it is set to be delivered annually in order to support the education and training of staff within Scotland’s Breast Imaging Service.
Find out more about the Scottish Academy of Breast Imaging here.