Collaborative Communication: A Qualitative Study of Roles and Emphases of Health Care Providers in Obstetrics and Gynecology

Purpose: Clinical nursing in obstetrics and gynecology is a technically demanding job. Doctors and nurses have different professional backgrounds and work priorities, and there are differences in communication modes, which can easily lead to poor communication between medical staff and their patients. Therefore this study aims to examine the different communication roles and emphases of obstetrician and gynecologists, nurses and midwives in different sections of SEGUE framework, and further navigate the effectiveness and differences of offline and online provider-patient communication. Participants and Methods: This study employs in-depth interviews to address the research questions. A total of 24 health care providers, including 8 doctors, 5 midwives and 11 nurses, were interviewed face-to-face or by telephone. Results: Doctors pay more attention to the "giving information" stage, while nurses pay more attention to "set the stage" and "elicit information" steps. Midwives and nurses spend more time with patients before and after labor. In addition to information giving, they also accommodate the "understand the patient's perspective" and "end the encounter" steps. Nurses and midwives would attach greater importance to "understanding of patients' perspective". Online medical consultation is more convenient for patients, which can be used as a follow-up complement to offline medical consultation. Conclusion: The health care providers of different types in obstetrics and gynecology communicate collaboratively with patients, highlighting the equally important role of midwives and nurses when communicating with patients. Nurses focus on "set the stage" and "elicit information" stage. Midwife is another important information source and medical care provider, especially for pregnant women in stable conditions. Nutrition clinic of midwife could be recommended for hospitals in second- and third-tier cities, which could help to alleviate obstetricians' workload. The provision of an online collaborative consultation could be beneficial supplement after face-toface doctor-patient communication.