Journal of General Practice

Differences in Verbal Behaviour Style in Interviews of Patients Females with Patients Companion (Triads) and Without Patient's Companion (Dyads) in Family Medicine

Abstract

Jose Luis Turabian, Luis Enoc Minier-Rodriguez, Sandra Moreno-Ruiz, Francis Eliant Rodriguez-Almonte, Raul Cucho-Jove and Alejandro Villarin-Castro

Objective: To describe differences in verbal behaviour style in interviews of patients females with patient's companion (triadic consultations) and patient’s females without patient's companion (dyadic consultations) in family medicine.

Participants and Methods: Secondary analysis of existing dataset coded to explore patient-clinician verbal communication during ambulatory visits in a family medicine office in a health Centre in Toledo (Spain) was carried out. A qualitative study was performed by audio recording of the consultations and verbal content analysis of the interviews, based on the identification of 6 categories of classification of behaviours of the interaction process (Proposing, Supporting/Agreeing, Disagreeing, Giving Information, Seeking Information, and Building). A convenience sample was carried out. A suitable sample number was considered when saturation occurred. Quantitative methodology was used as a technique to control the reliability and biases.

Results: 5 unaccompanied consultations and 7 consultations with companion were included in the analysis. The female patients with a companion show 2/3 more verbal behaviours (165 vs. 101) with slightly more behaviours of “Supporting or Agreeing” (42% vs. 34%), but less of “Giving Information” (43% vs. 53%) than when the female patients go unaccompanied, predominating these two types of behaviours in both modalities. Consultation with female patients with a companion shows almost twice as many verbal behaviours of the doctor vs. the consultation with unaccompanied women (186 vs. 100), and is longer (6.4 ' vs. 7.7').

Conclusions: This study shows that consultations of female patients with a companion are longer and more verbal behaviours are performed. In patients female the triadic consultations have more agreements, but less information is obtained than in the dyadic, and in general there is mixed results. Female patients show a clear predominance of verbal behaviours of “Giving information” and “Supporting or Agreeing”, both with or without companion in the consultation.