for consent before using her or his first name

if she or he is comfortable with eye contact

how she or he communicates and says yes and no

if she or he would like the support worker to stay in the room for all or part of the examination

that you will speak directly to the patient throughout the interview

that it is important that you connect with the patient and build trust and rapport

that you will tell the patient when you understand and when you do not understand

to please listen to the conversation as if you were speaking to them

to please fill in gaps if they can when you glance at them

being curious

asking testing questions throughout the interview and looking for a response

using humour as a test—a smile can mean the patient is listening!

persisting in your curiosity over time; anxiety plays a big role, and it might take several visits before the patient relaxes

using the patient’s communication tools, as well as pictures and gestures

pointing out body parts or miming (eg, checking ears)

spending time explaining the physical examination

encouraging the use of the patient’s communication tools across environments

considering the high rates of hearing (50%) and vision (40%) impairments—screen for them and adjust your communication accordingly

to build rapport and attune to the person

to address emotions in the communication triad and gaps in information

for the patient to respond (10 s for those with receptive or expressive delay)

to check in on what the patient and caregiver understood

to provide written communication of the management plan, with visual cues in keeping with the level of health literacy