This graduate seminar examines issues of interpersonal dynamics when talking about health and healthcare. Discussion centers on the role of communication in healthcare interactions and examine how communication can facilitate, hinder, or create inequities of care that occurs among patients. The course will review communication among clinicians, patients, and significant others and families. Themes of discussion include patient-provider communication, culture in healthcare, medical mistrust, health literacy, and the role of close others in managing healthcare

Upon the successful completion of this course, students should be able to:

• Identify important healthcare issues in interpersonal communication.
• Analyze health-related interpersonal communication through multiple lenses.
• Discuss main healthcare themes that emerge from empirical research and their implications.
• Recognize the multiple functions interpersonal communication contributes to managing health and healthcare contexts.
• Develop presentation material and activities.
• Evaluate empirical research about an interpersonal health issue.