Kayla Speciale
Communication has always been a huge part of everyone’s lives. Knowing it or not, we use communication skills with almost everything we do. These include, proper grammar, listening, writing and editing skills. In many workplaces, grammar mistakes have recently become a huge issue, as the world of technology has bloomed. In the medical field, communication can be a matter of life, or death. To be able to pursue my interest in entering this field, I will need to become better equipped with all of the grammar rules, and improve all of my communication skills, as it is very important to be well educated on this subject.
Communicating in the workplace is very important. In Susan Adams’ article, “Why Grammar Counts at Work” she explains, in several ways, how good grammar can help one become more efficient. With technology growing more persistent, people today are bringing social media language into the workforce, which defies the grammar rules. With good grammar, a person can be more organized, improve their speech, and attention skills. Learning how to identify grammar mistakes and obtaining editing skills, can help one pay attention to detail when it comes to working, or just carrying on a conversation. Grammar is a bigger deal then many may think. Those who don’t find grammar important, may not think adding apostrophes is necessary with words like “wouldn’t” or “can’t” which show two words being combined. Knowing an important difference like this, and becoming strict on grammar, can help a business strive for the best. If someone with bad grammar habits comes into the picture, they can rub off on others who they may interact with. If you become strict on your self to use proper grammar, you will see an improvement in your everyday life.
One simple mistake that can occur in the medical field, from someone who does not take grammar seriously, is if a chart is meant to say, “This patient can’t have morphine,” but instead says, “This patient can have morphine.” Because of this one letter one change, from someone who isn’t paying attention, the situation of the problem will come with deadly consequences. As Kyle Wiens says, “Grammar is credibility, your words are all you have. Once in writing, it never goes away.” (Wines) Becoming a Certified Nurse is a long, expensive journey, but in the end it is worth the skills and experiences that you wouldn’t gain anywhere else. Communication plays a huge role when it comes to talking to patient, families and to other medical professionals. Within this field of work. Clear language, detailed conversations, and being knowledgeable on the patient and current medical practices and procedures, will help you to communicate in many difficult situations; such as, talking to a family about a loved one who was in a car accident. When writing prescriptions, reports, and or notes about a patient, or problem, it’s important to write clearly and in detail, so others can read it, and can know exactly what’s going on. Reading medical charts, medical histories and research on a difficult case, all come from listening and understanding the situation, the patient and the doctor’s communication with their Nurse Anesthetist, Nurse Midwife, or Nurse Practitioner, also know as APRN. not only is an on the floor all day, taking on difficult tasks and different situations, APRNs may also conduct research and keep the staff updated on new policies and procedures. As you can see, grammar and editing can be critical in this job field.
In my educational journey, I have not had the best time with grammar, reading, nor writing. Walking into college was a huge eye opener. I have started going to English tutoring once a week, which during that time, reading strategies are discussed, and also review papers, so that I can become aware and catch grammar mistakes. With the technology advancing, there are now grammar apps for mobile devices. I will begin to use English Grammar Test, as a way to keep my mind sharp and practice my grammar. My commutation skills improving as I have been working in the food industry. I think there is always room for improvement in anything that you do in life, therefore I plan to listen more closely, to better understand what people are saying and to be able to verbally respond quickly. I will take what I have learned about listening and commutating back and forth as I began my journey into the medical field.
Communication will never go away. It will only become more important as we began to communicate more online, rather the in person. Just recently I’ve realized the huge role communication and grammar plays in my life, and how you are judged based on your skills. I will continue to work on progressing my skills, as I aim to fulfill my dream of entering the medical field.
Work Cited
Adams, Susan. "Why Grammar Counts At Work." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 12 July 2012. Web. 4 Oct. 2015.<http://www.forbes.com/sites/susanadams/2012/07/20/why-grammar-counts-at-work/>.
Wiens, Kyle. "I Won't Hire People Who Use Poor Grammar. Here's Why." Harvard Business Review. 20 July 2012. Web. 4 Oct 2015.<https://hbr.org/2012/07/i-wont-hire-people-who-use-poo>.
"Summary." U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 8 Jan. 2014. Web. 4 Oct. 2015. <http://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/pharmacists.htm>.