Personal journal writing in a communication skills course for first-year medical students

1993 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 196-204 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. E. ASHBURY ◽  
B. M. FLETCHER ◽  
R. V. BIRTWHISTLE
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Journal Writing ◽  
First Year ◽  
First Year Medical Students

scholarly journals A cross-sectional study exploring attitudes of first year medical students towards psychiatry and factors they identified that would help stimulate their interest

BJPsych Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (S1) ◽  
pp. S146-S146
Author(s):  
Isabel Mark ◽  
Victoria Fernandez Garcia De Las Heras
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Role Model ◽  
P Value ◽  
First Year ◽  
Free Text ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Awareness Campaigns ◽  
First Year Medical Students

AimsPsychiatry has had long standing recruitment difficulties. Many efforts have been made to explore strategies that encourage interest in the specialty, with early university experience being an important factor in ultimate career choice. The Royal College of Psychiatrists ‘Choose Psychiatry’ guidance for medical schools outlines four key areas of focus: teaching excellence, placement quality, leadership and enrichment activities, with other research reporting similar conclusions. The aim of this study was to assess attitudes towards psychiatry amongst first year medical students, examine what input they would welcome from psychiatrists at this stage of their career and consider if their wishes are in keeping with the ‘Choose Psychiatry’ guidance.MethodAll first-year medical students at St George's University of London were approached in October 2019 and offered the opportunity for early psychiatry exposure. 60 students were recruited. Data were collected in November 2019 via an online questionnaire comprising of baseline demographics, the 30-item Attitudes Towards Psychiatry questionnaire (ATP-30) and a free-text question asking what students would like from psychiatry at this stage of their education. Quantitative data were analysed using Excel, whilst qualitative data were analysed thematically.ResultThe mean ATP-30 score was 113.83 (SD 12.57, range 70-135). Gender, ethnicity and religious background were not associated with a change in ATP score. Undergraduates’ attitudes were more positive than those of postgraduates (independent t-test revealed a p-value of 0.087). Seven themes were identified outlining what students wanted from psychiatry, the most prominent being: (a) learning about the lifestyle of a psychiatrist and finding a role model, (b) exploring the patient perspective, (c) exploring the interaction between psychiatry and specialities and (d) having an opportunity to develop communication skills.ConclusionThe findings demonstrate higher ATP-30 results than previous literature has reported, potentially due to mental health awareness campaigns in recent years. As undergraduates were found to have a higher mean score, targeting them for additional psychiatry contact may be beneficial. Themes identified by students in this study support ‘Choose Psychiatry’ guidance, whilst also highlighting the potential for combining some psychiatry with other specialties in the curriculum. Integration with communication skills teaching might help engage those not initially psychiatry-inclined. Further study will be required to establish whether implementing the suggested strategies can lead to improvement in student ATP-30 scores and ultimately increased recruitment rates.

scholarly journals Using Item Analysis to Assess Objectively the Quality of the Calgary-Cambridge OSCE Checklist

2011 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. e16-e22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tyrone Donnon ◽  
Murray Lee ◽  
Sarah Cairncross
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Item Analysis ◽  
Practical Approach ◽  
First Year ◽  
Internal Reliability ◽  
The Mean ◽  
K 12 ◽  
First Year Medical Students

Background:  The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of item analysis to assess objectively the quality of items on the Calgary-Cambridge Communications OSCE checklist.Methods:  A total of 150 first year medical students were provided with extensive teaching on the use of the Calgary-Cambridge Guidelines for interviewing patients and participated in a final year end 20 minute communication OSCE station.  Grouped into either the upper half (50%) or lower half (50%) communication skills performance groups, discrimination, difficulty and point biserial values were calculated for each checklist item.Results:  The mean score on the 33 item communication checklist was 24.09 (SD = 4.46) and the internal reliability coefficient was ? = 0.77. Although most of the items were found to have moderate (k = 12, 36%) or excellent (k = 10, 30%) discrimination values, there were 6 (18%) identified as ‘fair’ and 3 (9%) as ‘poor’. A post-examination review focused on item analysis findings resulted in an increase in checklist reliability (? = 0.80).Conclusions:  Item analysis has been used with MCQ exams extensively. In this study, it was also found to be an objective and practical approach to use in evaluating the quality of a standardized OSCE checklist.

scholarly journals Comparison of self and simulated patient assessments of first-year medical students’ Interpersonal and Communication Skills (ICS) during Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCE)

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua A. Roshal ◽  
Dalya Chefitz ◽  
Carol A. Terregino ◽  
Anna Petrova
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Performance Appraisal ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Core Competencies ◽  
Female Gender ◽  
Simulated Patient ◽  
First Year ◽  
Question Asking ◽  
And Gender ◽  
First Year Medical Students

Abstract Background Interpersonal and communication skills (ICS) are important core competencies in medical education and certification. In this study, we identified self- and simulated patient (SP)-reported ratings of US first-year medical students’ ICS and the influence of age and gender on performance appraisal during the Objective-Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE). Methods OSCE participants, including 172 first-year medical students and 15 SPs were asked to evaluate the students’ ICS using the American Board of Internal Medicine–Patient-Satisfaction Questionnaire (ABIM–PSQ), electronically and via paper, respectively. Self- and SP-reported ratings of students’ ICS were presented as the median on a 5-point Likert-scale and as three categories defined as “good,” “very good,” and “inadequate.” Results SPs assessed all 172 students in the OSCE, while 43.6% of students assessed their own performance. The majority of students and SPs evaluated the students’ ICS as very good. 23.3% of SPs and 5.3% of students rated the medical students’ ability to encourage patient question-asking and answer questions as inadequate (P <  0.002). Neither age nor gender influenced the medical students’ self-assessment of ICS. Female SPs assigned lower scores to students in regard to respecting patients and encouraging patient question-asking and answering. Older SPs was more likely to assign lower scores on all survey questions. Conclusions In the present study, self- and SP-reported ratings of first-year medical students’ ICS were mainly “very good” with no influence of students’ age or gender. Older age and female gender among the SPs were associated with a reduction in SP-reported ratings of students’ ICS.

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