Module 6 – Self Care: Effective Communication
Worksheet 6.4 Using your ICE tool (ideas, concerns and expectations)
“I have been supporting Mrs Krause for about three weeks now, working with her to get
up in the mornings and prompt her medication.
“Mrs Krause has had diabetes for some time and seems to manage it well through her
medications. I have noticed though she has been talking about her weight and
apologising when I support her to get up and out of bed, saying that she is ‘too heavy’.
“She seems to get quite distressed by her weight and mentions it in conversations a lot:
“Oh it such a lovely day Jenny, I can remember when I could just pop out into the
garden with the grand children but I find it difficult now, with the wheelchair and I’m so
heavy”.
“I listened to Mrs Krause for a couple of weeks so she had time to get to know me and
then when she mentioned it again I thought I’d try using my ICE tool.
So this is how I did it... I used a couple of open-ended questions to get the conversation
going:
New type of worker: “Mrs Krause you keep mentioning about your weight, how is it
making you feel?”
Mrs Krause: “Yes dear, it is really getting me down, and it stops me from doing things.”
New type of worker: “Why do you think that is Mrs Krause?”
Mrs Krause: “Well, I’m in this wheelchair more now after the op, and I am not eating as
well as I use to, it does concern me and it brings me down.”
New Type of Worker: “What do you think we can do Mrs Krause? Could I find some
information on healthy foods for you?”
Mrs Krause: “Oh I don’t think anything can help dear, I think I’m past it.”
New Type of Worker: “You are not past it at all; you know that I’m here if you would like
to get some information that will help, don’t you?”
“I left it for a couple more weeks; I just wanted to plant the seed with Mrs Krause so if
she really wanted I could support her to get more information on her diet.
“After three weeks Mrs Krause spoke to me unprompted and asked if I could get some
information for her on healthy eating.
“I was really happy that using my ICE tool had promoted Mrs Krause to think about
ways she could start to take control and eat healthier food again. I am sure this will start
to make her feel better about herself again.”
Question 1
Where did the new type of worker start to gather information from Mrs Krause about the
ideas, the concerns and the expectations she had about her weight and her unhealthy
eating?

Ideas

Concerns

Expectations
Question 2
What do you think are the benefits of using the ICE tool for Mrs Krause?
Question 3
Can you think of someone you know that would benefit from the ICE tool? – Yes/No
How would it benefit them?