Q&A

If you need professional help for yourself or partner/child/family.

Asking professional help is a major step to almost everybody. Here, you can find some frequently asked questions and answers that may be of help. On the next page you can find some tips to support you during the care process.

Click upon the question to see the answer.

Why is good cooperation with professionals so important?
Good cooperation helps the exchange of important information. It also enhances a balanced input of all participants. Good cooperation helps:
– assessment (what is going on?)
– suitable counseling (what could help?)
– shared decision-making (which choices do we make?)
– effective treatment (how will we cope with the problems?)
What are the effects of good cooperation between patients/clients and professionals?
Research and daily practice show that good cooperation leads to less uncertainty, more satisfaction in all participants and to a better outcome. The better the cooperation, the bigger the chance that the help offered suits you best and offers you the result you’re looking for.
How do we accomplish good cooperation?
To cooperate harmonious connection is needed. The more connected, the greater the chance we agree upon several subjects, such as:

– the necessity of help
– the need of help
– what’s going on or wrong
– the expected kind of help
– the expected result
– which help is possible
– how to make the right choices
– who is responsible for what.

The more we agree, the greater the chance upon a successful treatment.

What in any case is necessary to have a good conversation?
To have a good conversation it is important that you understand the professional involved and that she or he understands what you mean. Nowadays more and more professionals use plain language instead of their jargon. If something is unclear to you, you should better let know immediately.
What else can improve the conversation?
Often talking about personal matters is not so easy. Feelings such as fear, guilt, shame, hopelessness and lack of confidence can hinder this. Your care provider shall take this common feelings into account. Realizing these feelings are quite normal can help to verbalize them. Speaking about feelings can often give some relief already.
What contribution to a good cooperation can you make yourself?
Your care provider will try to accomplish a good connection and cooperation with you. You can contribute to this as well. Many people like to think about what can be discussed before they meet the professional and to talk about possible conversation subjects with others, such as relatives or their family doctor. The same counts for reflection upon encounters afterwards. You can always make some notes and bring them along the next time.
You find this information on the Dialogue Model site. What does the Dialogue Model mean and how can I benefit from it?
It is possible that your care provider uses the Dialogue Model. It is a method to achieve good connection and cooperation in care in case of complex, multiple problems or chronic care with multiple care needs.
To you it means that your care provider talks with you (and your close relatives) in a dialogical way. At certain moments she or he will use a picture to provide an understandable overview and good insight concerning what’s going on in your specific situation and what possibly can be changed for the better. Using the Dialogue Model means:
– an understandable explanation in plain language and plenty of opportunity for you to tell your story, your view upon what is going on.
– a respectful approach, receptive to your personal circumstances, opinion, needs, values and questions.
– appreciation for the choices you make in treatment options offered.

In short: the Dialogue Model is a method to support good conversation and cooperation with your care provider.