Tech Refresher: How to deal with patients behaving badly

No one should be harrassed at work, maintains the Pharmacy Association of Nova Scotia (PANS). And yet, more than 50% of pharmacy professionals polled in a 2024 survey indicated they had experienced harassment over the past year, and almost all of the reported mistreatment came from patients, PANS reports. “Literature would suggest mistreatment is increasing, and/or that we are paying more attention to it and exploring it in more detail,” says Jamie Kellar, associate professor and associate dean at the University of Toronto’s Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy. There are many possible causes for this escalation, suggests Kellar, which include post-pandemic-related stress/anxiety, mistrust in science/healthcare, financial stressors, political and global unrest, drug shortages, prescription wait times, expensive drugs and/or drugs not covered.But whatever the reason, this behaviour “is unacceptable,” says Allison Bodnar, PANS CEO. In response, PANS developed the KindRx campaign (see sidebar on page 5) to remind everyone that “kindness is contagious.”Read: Educators prepare students to practise under new ACP practice standardsKellar advises pharmacy professionals to “stay calm, even when patients are angry or escalating; seek clarification if the patient says something that is inappropriate—often when asked to clarify, they see the error in their ways and adjust their comments/behaviour. Avoid engaging in arguments and using accusatory statements that start with ‘you’; use ‘I’ statements to state your perceptions/understanding.”“Staying calm is generally number one for me—maintaining my composure and making sure that I am actively listening to the patient’s concerns to ensure that they know I am focused on them and the issue at hand,” says Robyn Oickle, pharmacy technician and assistant instructor at Eastern College in Halifax. “However, ensuring that I am setting limits is also incredibly important, especially in regard to language and the level of confrontation. Removing the patient from a public situation can also help; taking them into a private counsel room can show that your full attention is on them and the potential issue, and you can work together to resolve it.”Oickle points out that while confrontation is always a possibility, sometimes it can be averted by following through on promises to patients. “If you tell a patient you are going to do something, ensure that it happens in an appropriately timely manner and that communication is happening,” she says. “From my experience, most patient frustration can stem from lack of proper communication and patients’ expectations on the pharmacy team.”Read: Tech Talk: A Guide for Improving Care for Patients with ADHD“It’s useful to have a strategy for de-escalating a difficult situation,” notes Kellar. She says one way to do this is by applying a framework called GRIT, an acronym for a process that involves Gathering your thoughts, Restating an offending comment or asking the patient to repeat what they just said, Inquiring to get more clarity and Talking it out.“In practice, this would translate into pausing—instead of reacting immediately—after a patient has acted inappropriately, and using that moment to decide whether to deal with the problem on the spot or wait, perhaps choosing to call the patient later when you can have a more constructive dialogue,” she says. Unfortunately, “very few” organizations today have formal policies in place to address abusive behaviour, says Kellar. “It’s relatively new but it’s something that we have to work towards.” In fact, she is currently conducting a study sponsored by the Canadian Foundation for Pharmacy to explore this issue further and will create educational materials for pharmacy teams, likely to be ready in about 18 months.Both Kellar and Oickle urge all healthcare workers to take care of their mental health and well-being. “Conflict resolution can be emotionally draining, so they must seek support if needed,” says Oickle.After all, “we’re humankind, not human-mean, says Bodnar. “I think that says it all.”This article appeared in the Feb/March 2025 issue of Tech Talk. Find it and other Tech Talk issues here.

Tech Refresher: How to deal with patients behaving badly

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