Transforming Pediatric Provider Communication
Healthcare leaders continue to search for better ways to strengthen trust, improve communication, and support care teams. Many training programs focus on theory, scripts, or peer review. Yet one voice often remains underused in provider development. That voice is the voice of the patient and family.
For pediatric healthcare leaders, this gap is even more complex. Communication often involves both the child and the caregiver at the same time. Each interaction carries emotional weight and requires clarity, empathy, and trust across two audiences.
At NRC Health’s HUB26 conference, September 2–4 in Nashville, one session will focus on this challenge with practical methods. “Through Their Eyes: Using a Family Lens to Transform Provider Communication Through Observation-Based Coaching” introduces a model that brings the family experience directly into clinician growth.
HUMAN UNDERSTANDING BEYOND | HUB26
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Why Provider Communication Remains a Challenge in Healthcare
Communication shapes every healthcare experience. In pediatric care, trust must be built with both the child and the caregiver at once. A provider may explain a diagnosis to a parent while helping a child feel calm and safe.
Strong communication supports outcomes and employee experience. It also reduces confusion and stress for families who face difficult decisions.
Yet many clinicians rarely receive direct feedback on how their communication feels in real time. They may review survey data weeks later. That delay limits growth; small behaviors that define the experience often go unnoticed.
Organizations can close this gap by bringing the patient and family voice into the moment of care and using it to guide improvement.
A Patient and Family Perspective on Provider Communication
This HUB26 session will drawn upon the work of Anand Petigara, MSW, Senior Family Consultant at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. His role connects his professional training with his lived experience as a caregiver of a child with complex medical needs.
That dual lens shapes how Petigara works with providers. He partners with teams to strengthen relationships with patients and families across care settings. His work includes family advisory councils and programs that place the family voice at the center of care decisions.
At HUB26, Petigara will share how these ideas come to life through FLOURISH, a provider coaching program built on observation and feedback from the family perspective.
In pediatric settings, this model helps providers adjust communication across age groups while guiding caregivers through complex or emotional situations.
How Observation-Based Coaching Improves Provider Communication
Traditional coaching often relies on self-reflection or peer input. Observation-based coaching adds a direct view of real interactions in clinical settings, where trained observers watch encounters and capture details that shape experience. Tone, pacing, body language, and clarity all matter in pediatric care; providers must respond to both a child’s emotional state and a caregiver’s need for clear information.
These encounters often carry strong emotion. Families may be managing fear, confusion, or long-term conditions. Observation helps identify how providers respond in these moments and how small changes can improve trust.
Participants in this session will learn how direct observation reveals blind spots and strengthens emotional awareness. They will see how feedback rooted in real interactions helps providers improve with clarity.
This model focuses on strengths. Coaches highlight what works and build from there, creating a supportive environment where clinicians feel safe to grow.
What Healthcare Leaders Will Learn at HUB26
Attendees will leave this session with practical ideas they can apply in pediatric care settings.
They will learn how to:
- Integrate patient and family voices into pediatric provider coaching
- Identify behaviors that build trust with both children and caregivers
- Adapt communication across age groups and developmental stages
- Design coaching programs that support clinician growth
- Use observation in clinical settings without disrupting care
These steps can fit large children’s hospitals or smaller pediatric practices. They support both new clinicians and experienced providers.
Why Patient Experience and Communication Matter Now More Than Ever
Healthcare organizations face growing pressure to improve patient experience and support staff well-being. In pediatric care, families expect clear guidance, compassion, and consistency across every interaction.
Small shifts in behavior can change how families experience care. A clear explanation helps a parent make decisions; a calm tone helps a child feel safe. A moment of attention builds trust that lasts beyond the visit.
Programs like FLOURISH show that improvement starts with real interactions. Teams can learn from what happens in the room and apply those lessons across the organization.
This session shows how to turn everyday moments into opportunities for growth.
What to Expect at NRC Health's HUB26 in Nashville
HUB26 will bring together healthcare leaders from across the country, including pediatric providers, children’s hospital teams, and experience leaders who are focused on family-centered care.
Attendees will hear from speakers who are testing new ideas in active care settings. Sessions will focus on patient feedback, workforce engagement, leadership, and communication.
The conference will take place in Nashville, September 2–4, and will offer space to learn, connect, and focus on practical improvements that support patients, families, and care teams.
Why This HUB26 Session Should Be on Your Agenda
This session stands out because it centers the patient and family experience in provider development, which is critical to pediatric care.
It shows how to listen to families and turn their experiences into meaningful feedback; it also presents a model that teams can apply without complex tools or long training cycles. For pediatric healthcare leaders who want stronger communication and deeper trust with families, this session will offer a clear path forward.
Register for NRC Health’s HUB26
Healthcare continues to evolve, and expectations from patients and families continue to rise. Pediatric leaders face unique challenges that require clear communication and strong relationships with caregivers.
For pediatric healthcare leaders who are working to strengthen family trust and provider communication, HUB26 will offer practical methods you can bring back to your teams right away.
Join us in Nashville this September, and take part in the conversations shaping the future of pediatric patient experience.
