Communication Skills Course for Healthcare Professionals in the UAE
Most complaints start with a conversation. Practise consultation structure, plain-language explanation, interpreter use, serious news and de-escalation for a multilingual, multicultural patient population.
2learning hours
20final questions
80%pass mark
PDFcertificate
What you will learn
Explain the communication duties in Federal Decree-Law No. (4) of 2016 (Art. 4), Cabinet Resolution No. (40) of 2019 (Art. 2), the Patient Charter (Ministerial Resolution No. (14) of 2021) and DHA Code ST-66 Standard 8.
Open and structure a consultation, listen actively and explore the patient's ideas, concerns and expectations.
Explain diagnoses, plans, medicines and risks in plain language, using chunk-and-check, teach-back and natural frequencies.
Conduct shared decision-making that covers all reasonable options, costs and the competent patient's wishes about family involvement.
Choose and work with appropriate interpreting support, and document interpreter use in line with DHA or DOH consent rules.
Communicate respectfully across cultures and religions without stereotyping, including requests for a same-gender professional, and adapt communication for children and for patients with hearing, sight, speech or cognitive difficulties.
Give serious news using a structured approach, and respond to relatives' requests to withhold information within federal law.
De-escalate anger, set boundaries on abusive behaviour and communicate safely when a patient leaves against medical advice.
Use ISBAR, closed-loop communication and graded assertiveness for handover, escalation and speaking up, and write records and telehealth notes that meet UAE rules.
Respond to complaints about communication and build a specific, evidenced improvement plan that demonstrates insight.
Relevant to
The UAE codes, standards and laws this course helps you reflect on. Relevance is our own mapping; it is not an approval by any authority.
DHADHA Code of Ethics ST-66 Standard 8 (Ensure Professional and Ethical Communication at All Times); interpreter provisions of DHA GU-05; DHA ST-53
DOHInterpreter provisions of the DOH Patient Consent Standard (2025)
MOHAPCommunication rights in the Patient's Rights and Responsibilities Charter (Ministerial Resolution No. 14 of 2021)
Information duties in Federal Decree-Law No. 4 of 2016 (Art. 4) and Cabinet Resolution No. 40 of 2019 (Art. 2)
About this course
This course teaches the communication skills that safe, lawful practice in the UAE depends on: opening and structuring a consultation, listening, explaining in plain language, checking understanding with teach-back, communicating risk, shared decision-making that includes costs and family, working with interpreters, communicating with children and with patients who have sensory, speech or cognitive difficulties, breaking bad news, end-of-life conversations, de-escalating anger, structured handover and escalation, written and telehealth communication, and responding when communication goes wrong. Each skill is tied to the legal duties in Federal Decree-Law No. (4) of 2016 on Medical Liability, Cabinet Resolution No. (40) of 2019, the Patient's Rights and Responsibilities Charter (Ministerial Resolution No. (14) of 2021) and DHA Code ST-66 Standard 8.
It is written for physicians, dentists, nurses and midwives, pharmacists and allied health professionals licensed by MOHAP, DHA, DOH or SHA, or working in Dubai Healthcare City. It is particularly useful for professionals new to the UAE, those moving between emirates, and those who want to strengthen their practice after patient feedback, a complaint or a concern about communication.
The UAE's patients and healthcare workforce come from many countries and speak many languages, and families often play a central role in health decisions. These realities make communication harder and more important. Communication failures run through many patient complaints and can lead to Medical Liability Committee referrals and disciplinary penalties. Through UAE case studies set in hospitals, clinics and pharmacies across the emirates, practical scripts and comparison tables, this course helps you communicate in a way that protects patients and stands up to review.
Syllabus
10 sections, about 2 learning hours, 20-question final assessment
1Communication as a professional duty in the UAE2 lessons
Why communication is a clinical skill in UAE practice
The UAE rules on communication: federal, emirate and facility
2The consultation: listening, explaining and deciding together3 lessons
Opening the consultation and listening well
Explaining clearly and checking understanding
Shared decision-making: options, values, costs and family
3Language, culture and individual communication needs4 lessons
Language access: choosing the right interpreting support
Working with an interpreter, step by step
Culture, religion and family without stereotyping
Children, sensory loss and cognitive impairment: adapting how you communicate
4Difficult conversations3 lessons
Breaking bad news, and the role of the family
Serious illness, prognosis and end-of-life conversations
Anger, distress and challenging behaviour
5Communication within the healthcare team2 lessons
Handover, referral and escalation: structured communication
Respect, disagreement and speaking up in multinational teams
6Written, remote and digital communication2 lessons
Written communication: records, letters and patient information
Telehealth, telephone and digital messaging
7When communication goes wrong: complaints, insight and improvement3 lessons
How communication failures become complaints and regulatory concerns
Responding to a dissatisfied patient or a complaint
Showing insight: from reflection to an evidenced plan for change
8Conclusion and key points1 lesson
Conclusion and key points
9References and further reading1 lesson
References and further reading
10Your reflective account1 lesson
Your reflective account
Course facts
CPD value
Approximately 2 learning hours (self-directed CPD, including knowledge checks, reflection and assessment)
Audience
Physicians, dentists, nurses and midwives, pharmacists and allied health professionals licensed by MOHAP, DHA, DOH or SHA, or working in Dubai Healthcare City
Standards covered
Federal Decree-Law No. (4) of 2016 on Medical Liability (Arts 4, 5, 9, 10, 11, 20, 37); Cabinet Resolution No. (40) of 2019 (Arts 2, 7 and telehealth annex, 8); Ministerial Resolution No. (14) of 2021 (Patient's Rights and Responsibilities Charter); Federal Law No. (5) of 2019 (Arts 17, 28); Federal Law No. (6) of 2023 (Arts 8, 13); Federal Law No. (2) of 2019 (health data); DHA Standards for Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct ST-66 (2025), Standard 8 (section 12); DHA Guidelines for Patient Consent GU-05 (2024); DHA ST-53 (open disclosure); Dubai Executive Council Resolution No. (49) of 2024 (Schedule 4; Arts 19, 22); DOH Patient Consent Standard (2025)
Format
Self-paced, gated lessons with knowledge checks, UAE case studies and reflection
Assessment
20 scenario-based questions, 80% to pass (16 of 20)
Outcome
Certificate of completion and a written reflection for your professional development portfolio
Alignment
Supports DHA Code of Ethics ST-66 Standard 8 (Ensure Professional and Ethical Communication at All Times) and its same-gender provider clause; the communication rights in the national Patient Charter; the information duties in the federal Medical Liability law for MOHAP, DOH, SHA and DHA licensees; and the interpreter provisions of DHA GU-05 and the DOH Patient Consent Standard
Price
AED 349
Who this course is for
Physicians, dentists, nurses and midwives, pharmacists and allied health professionals licensed by MOHAP, DHA, DOH or SHA, or working in Dubai Healthcare City.
Written for professionals licensed by any UAE authority: MOHAP, DHA, DOH, SHA or DHCR. Where the rules differ, the course explains the difference.
Your certificate
Your name, the course title and the approximate learning hours
Completion date and your final-assessment score
A unique certificate number with a QR code anyone can verify
The certificate states that the course is not accredited by any UAE health authority and that no CME/CPD points or credits are awarded. Whether it counts towards your licence renewal is for your licensing authority to decide.
Healthcare Practise
Certificate of Completion
This certificate is presented to
Your Name
Communication Skills Course for Healthcare Professionals in the UAE
Approximately 2 learning hours · Final assessment score shown
Certificate No.HP-7K2M-9QXA
HPUAE
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Questions about this course
Can relatives ask me not to tell a patient their diagnosis?
Families in the UAE often ask this. Module 4 shows how to respond within federal law, starting from the competent patient's own wishes about how much they want to know and who should be involved, and how to give serious news using a structured approach that respects both the patient and the family.
How should I work with interpreters in UAE practice?
Module 3 covers choosing the right interpreting support for the situation, briefing the interpreter, speaking to the patient rather than the interpreter, and documenting interpreter use in line with the DHA or DOH consent rules. It also explains the risks of relying on relatives or untrained staff for important conversations.
Does the course cover angry patients and leaving against medical advice?
Module 4 covers de-escalating anger, setting boundaries on abusive behaviour and communicating safely when a patient decides to leave against medical advice, so that the patient has the information they need and the record shows it. It explains how to record what was said and what the patient decided.
Is communication within the healthcare team included?
Module 5 covers ISBAR, closed-loop communication and graded assertiveness for handover, escalation and speaking up. Module 6 adds written, remote and telehealth communication that meets UAE record rules. For a deeper treatment of team dynamics, the Teamwork and Interprofessional Collaboration Course goes further.
Will the communication course help with a complaint about my manner?
Module 7 shows you how to respond to a complaint about communication and build a specific, evidenced improvement plan that demonstrates insight. It cannot decide the outcome, it is not accredited by any UAE health authority, and it does not replace training that has been ordered unless the authority accepts it.
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