A team of physiotherapists from the same practice attended our Motivational Interviewing course together. During the session, we explored how communication style can influence patient engagement and motivation. In particular, they wanted to explore how they could build rapport and understanding of their patients, to help support behavioural change.
In a series of role play scenarios, it became clear that the team tended to provide patients with a lot of information, often before checking whether the person was ready or able to take it in. This insight opened up an important conversation about empathy and perspective-taking.
We discussed the value of “stepping onto someone else’s planet” — taking time to understand the patient’s perspective, priorities, and readiness to change before offering advice or information.
By the end of the course, the team could clearly see how to apply these new skills directly in their clinical practice. They left the training with a shared commitment to slow down, listen more, and focus on collaborative communication.
Just a week later, the lead physiotherapist emailed to share their reflections:
“It was a really thought-provoking day and has created a lot of discussion within the clinic this week. We’re certainly trying to introduce some simple strategies to help our rapport building and assessment effectiveness.”
This case demonstrates how a single training day can spark lasting change across a team, improving rapport, patient engagement, and overall assessment quality.
Ready to transform communication in your team?
Please contact me if you would like to discuss the training needs of your organisation and how we can help you.
Get in touch with us below and we will respond to you as soon as we can