Motivational Interviewing In Health Care

Helping patients to change behavior and other outcomes

Health Care involves not just giving people treatment. They come in with challenges connected to the way they lead their lives. The impact of poor environments on health and wellbeing is considerable.

Then the conversations begin, and all too often, it’s about helping people to find a better balance, adjust their medicines or address their use of substances, smoking, diet and exercise.

This is where Motivational Interviewing (MI) comes in: it might make good sense simply to tell them what to do, but this all too often falls on deaf ears, even worse, it can lead to kickback or resistance. “I would like to advise you to…” is met with a blank look or a “Yes but I can’t because…”.

Benefits of MI in Health Care

We have worked on MI in healthcare for over 25 years, conducting research studies and developing practical strategies for use in hospitals, primary care and in the community.

Common to all is a shift in approach that is at the same time both fundamental and simple: instead of badgering patients to change their ways, you briefly connect or come alongside, and help them to do this for themselves.

Guidelines and books have been written for practitioners in many fields of healthcare. Among the benefits of MI are:

• It can be used in brief consultations
• The skills involved help you to connect rapidly with people, not just as patients, but people. They appreciate that.
• It saves you spending time otherwise wasted in persuading people to change.
• It can be combined with skilful information and advice-giving in a helpful way.
• It lifts the responsibility off your shoulders to solve every problem you come across, because patients do the work for themselves.
• It is effective in many circumstances.