North Carolina’s transition to allowing the use of online DUI/DWI education when granted special permission has opened the door to greater access for residents and counselors alike. The digital landscape has presented some unique challenges. One of the biggest challenges for counselors is how to connect with patients online.

In this blog, we’ll discuss how you can clear this hurdle.

The Challenges of Online Sessions

Meeting clients over a video call differs from meeting them in person. It can present some scary hurdles for telehealth substance abuse counselors. For example, you might find yourself struggling with common challenges like:

• Lack of physical contact
• Missing visual and verbal cues
• Overlooking body language
• Lack of intimacy

Virtual interactions are here to stay. Online therapy, and by extension, the DWI education industry, is growing in popularity, use, coverage, and acceptance. Let’s dive into how to connect with patients online while tackling common challenges.

5 Ways You Can Connect with Patients Online

Interacting with someone over a screen can make maintaining focus and picking up on physical cues hard. Body language and tone are critical tools for every substance abuse counselor, and when it comes to how you connect with patients online, take extra care.

Here are some things to consider:

#1: Stage Your Space

Consider the tone you’re trying to convey.

According to Psychology Today, “The environment you create through [your] meeting space can greatly support a feeling of ease, consistency, and safety…[it] provides a foundation to create a supportive connection.”

Everything from the lighting to the colors and images in the camera frame will contribute to the tone of your space. What you wear, how you sit, your distance from the camera, and what is visible will amplify or detract from your desired tone.

It’s your responsibility to ensure the space you stage for virtual sessions is professional, appealing, and reflective of the tone you seek to create.

For example, you can better connect with your clients online by fostering a welcoming and calm space. You might achieve this by:

• Using a combination of neutral and calming colors
• Keeping the space simple and free of clutter
• Ensuring the lighting lends itself to focusing on you
• Selecting a seat that is close enough to catch your facial expressions easily but far enough away to capture some body language and hand gestures

What the camera captures should equal the tone and feeling you want a client to experience in an office setting.

#2: Watch Your Pace and Direction

The pacing of a session impacts how safe it feels and how trust is built. In person, we naturally catch unsaid cues and use them to adjust pace and direction. Those cues can be harder to see and mentally process via video.

For example, if a client doesn’t have great lighting, catching and decoding their facial expressions and body language can become challenging. A choppy Internet connection can make catching body language and tonal changes problematic.

You must be more aware of these hurdles during virtual sessions and devise ways to conquer them. That brings us to our third tip for fostering more robust connections with patients online.

#3: Maintain Collaborative Communication

Collaboration is the process of working together or cooperating. As a substance abuse counselor, collaborative communication is one of the most critical tools in your toolbox. It aids in building trust and connection with your clients.

In the digital landscape, collaborative communication is even more vital. Open two-way communication becomes necessary since things can get “lost in translation” when working with video calls, text messages, and inboxing.

You can actively maintain beneficial communication by:

• Asking questions, especially when you’re unsure of something
• Narrating your thoughts, where appropriate, to remain transparent
• Verbalizing how you may sense or think your client is feeling during interactions
• Discussing the areas you both use for calls to see if modifications to lighting, distance, or sound might be beneficial

#4: Promote Structure and Boundaries

It’s essential to have structured video sessions. Planned and flexible topics will help maintain efficiency and direction.

For substance abuse counselors, DWI classes often provide structure from the start. The course curriculum can be flexed where needed to meet client needs. At Absolute Advocacy, we strive to help our clients gain personal insight and power. It’s a facet of our DWI course that allows our counselors to meet individual needs and steer our clients toward lasting success.

Professional boundaries are as important in the digital setting as in person. You should still maintain the Dos and Don’ts of ethical client relationships.

#5: Check In Regularly

The success of virtual visits hinges on your client’s experience. It’s crucial to check in regularly with them. Ask them how the online sessions work for them, and keep an open space for discussing changes to the structure or format that might benefit them.

How Will You Proceed?

You can work to connect with patients online in a meaningful way by using the five ways to foster connections that we’ve covered.

Let us know in the comments what tips and tricks have helped you build strong relationships with your clients via virtual services.