Two-week virtual pre-medical program increases empathy, clinical and communication skills: a mixed methods evaluation study (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ujwal Srivastava ◽  
Amy Price ◽  
Larry F. Chu
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Patient Adherence ◽  
Clinical Skills ◽  
Skills Training ◽  
Virtual Learning Environment ◽  
Patient Anxiety ◽  
The Core ◽  
Care Measure

BACKGROUND Expressing empathy builds trust with patients, increases patient satisfaction and is associated with better health outcomes. Research shows expressing empathy and compassion to patients improves patient adherence to medications, decreases patient anxiety and decreases the number of malpractice lawsuits. Yet, there is a dearth of research on teaching empathy to pre-medical students. Stanford Medicine’s Clinical Science, Technology and Medicine Summer Internship (also called SASI) is a two-week, collaborative medical internship for high school and undergraduate students that aims to inspire students to pursue careers in healthcare as compassionate providers. The summer 2020 program was adapted to accomplish these objectives in a fully remote environment due to the COVID-19 global pandemic. OBJECTIVE This study measured the change in participants’ empathy and competencies in clinical and communication skills before and after program participation. METHODS Forty-one participants completed the Core Track (CT) only and thirty-nine participants completed the Core + Research Track (RT) of this program. Participants in both tracks received instruction in selected clinical skills and interacted directly with patients to improve interviewing skills and gain empathy. RT participants received additional instruction in research methodology. All participants completed online pre-and post-surveys about knowledge and skills assessment (KSA). Participant empathy was assessed using the validated Consultation and Relational Empathy (CARE) measure. A subset of participants completed optional focus groups to discuss empathy. Pre-and post- KSA and CARE measure scores were compared using paired t-tests and a linear regression model. Open-ended focus group answers were thematically analyzed. RESULTS Participants in both tracks demonstrated significant improvement in empathy after the two-week virtual online course (p = 0.007 in CT; p < 0.001 in RT). These results remained significant when controlled for gender and age. Lower pre-test score was associated with a greater change in empathy. Participants in both tracks demonstrated significant improvement in KSA questions related to surgical skills (CT: p < 0.001; RT: p < 0.001), epinephrine pen usage (CT: p < 0.001; RT: p < 0.001), x-ray image interpretation (CT: p < 0.001; RT: p < 0.001), and synthesizing information to problem solve (CT: p < 0.001; RT: p = 0.051). CT participants also showed significant improvement in health communication skills (p = 0.001). Qualitative analysis yielded three themes: empathy as action, empathy as a mindset, and empathy in designing healthcare systems. CONCLUSIONS Summer internships that introduce high school and undergraduate students to the field of healthcare through hands-on interaction and patient involvement may be an effective way to develop measurable empathy skills when combined with clinical skills training and mentorship. Notably, these increases were measured in a program administered via a virtual learning environment.

scholarly journals Communication skills training for the radiotherapy team to manage cancer patients’ emotional concerns: a systematic review

BMJ Open ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. e025420 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mara Myrthe van Beusekom ◽  
Josie Cameron ◽  
Carolyn Bedi ◽  
Elspeth Banks ◽  
Gerald Humphris
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Skills Training ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Repeated Measurements ◽  
Communication Skills Training ◽  
Patient Anxiety ◽  
Positive Effect

ObjectivesMany cancer patients experience high levels of anxiety and concern during radiotherapy, often with long-lasting effects on their well-being. This systematic review aims to describe and determine the effectiveness of communication skills training (CST) for the radiotherapy team (RT) to improve conversations in this setting and to support patients with emotional concerns.DesignSystematic review.InterventionsCST for RT members.Data sourcesOn 17 April 2018, databases Medline, Embase, Scopus and PsycNET were searched.Eligibility criteria, Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome(PICO)Quantitative and/or qualitative articles were included that evaluate the effect of a CST for RT members (vs no CST) on communication behaviours and patients’ emotional concerns.Data extraction and synthesisArticles were appraised using the mixed-methods appraisal tool, and a narrative synthesis was performed.ResultsOf the nine included articles, five were randomised controlled trials, three were mixed-methods and one used repeated measurements. Four of the five different CST programmes managed to increase emotional communicative behaviour from the RT, and all studies measuring patient communicative behaviour found an improvement in at least one of the hypothesised outcomes. Two studies examining patient anxiety and concerns found a positive effect of the CST, although one found a negative effect; two other studies without a positive effect on mood made use of both empathic CST and tools.ConclusionsThere are promising indications that CST can be successfully introduced to improve emotional conversations between RT members and patients. With the right support, the RT can play an important role to help patients cope with their emotional concerns. Future work is necessary to confirm initial promising results and to ensure the learnt communication skills are sustained.

scholarly journals Efficacy of Communication Skills Training of Preclinical Medical Students via Health Literacy Teaching of High School Students: A Pilot Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 73 (8) ◽  
pp. 532-540
Author(s):  
Tissana Prasartseree ◽  
Pittaya Dankulchai ◽  
Yodying Dangprapai ◽  
Thanjira Jiranantakan
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
High School Students ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Communication Skill ◽  
Skills Training ◽  
Communication Skills Training ◽  
School Students ◽  
Health Educator ◽  
Preclinical Medical Students

Objective: Communication Skills via Health Literacy (CSvHL) was a pilot elective communication skills training (CST) course, which allowed preclinical medical students to gain communication competence through the experience of being a health educator for high school students (HSSs). The efficacy of CSvHL was explored.Materials and Methods: All 10 medical students were prepared for their HSS-health-educator roles by participating in several observation sessions at an outpatient department and via communication workshops. In-field health education courses were subsequently delivered to HSSs by the medical students. Developments of the medical students’ communication skills were fostered through loops of learning activities and regular feedbacks. Assessments of the pre- and post-CSvHL communication skill levels by means of an OSCE, with adapted ComON Check were evaluated by each medical student, a standardized patient, and three medical instructors.Results: In general, the overall and category-specific average ComON Check scores of the whole class were significantly improved after the CSvHL course. The 3 communication defects with the lowest scores in the pre-CSvHL assessments were subsection division, summarization, and comprehension-check while counseling.Conclusion: CSvHL was successfully established as a preclinical-year CST course. The improvements in the ComON Check scores reflected the transformative learning gained from the hands-on experience, individualized CST, and 360° feedback OSCE for communication skill assessment.

scholarly journals The role of standardized patient assessment forms in medical communication skills education

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Grace Peters
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Medical Education ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Clinical Skills ◽  
Skills Training ◽  
The United States ◽  
Task Completion ◽  
Routine Practice ◽  
Item Checklist ◽  
Skills Education

Communication skills training is a routine practice in medical education designed to instruct and evaluate future physicians in matters of patient-provider interaction. Based on the United States Medical Licensing Examination Step 2 Clinical Skills (CS), medical schools across the United States hire and train standardized patients (SPs) to act as patients in and evaluators of simulated interactions with medical students (MSs). Using discourse analysis, I examine how a computerized assessment form creates a particularized version of communication skills with implications for future practice. The 39-item checklist is completed by SPs following a simulated interaction designed to prepare third-year MSs for the Step 2 CS. Specifically, I analyze how the form is structured to make recognizable specific communication skills tasks, who should complete said tasks, and what varying degrees of communication skills competency are within the realm of task completion. By analyzing the form, I consider the agency of texts in medical education, the implications of technologizing communication as an institutional skill, and the limitations of enlisting SPs to evaluate communication skills competency under the guise of a patient perspective.

Metadiscourse, materiality and morality in communication skills training with simulated patients

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Grace Peters
Keyword(s):  
Medical Education ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Clinical Skills ◽  
Standardized Patients ◽  
Skills Training ◽  
The United States ◽  
Simulated Patient ◽  
Simulated Patients ◽  
Communication Skills Training

Simulated patients (also known as standardized patients) are commonly employed by institutions of medical education to train medical students and assess their communication skills. This article demonstrates that such patients are not translational devices that enact prima facie standards of communication skills as laid out by the institutions that use them, but rather metadiscursively transform communication practices. This is shown via a case study that closely examines a series of interactions between a simulated patient and a third-year medical student during a practice exam designed for the United States Medical Licensing Examination Step 2 Clinical Skills. I use discourse analysis to show how communication skills are transformed in three practices: (1) simulated consultations between standardized patients and medical students; (2) spoken evaluations offered by standardized patients after simulated consultations between standardized patients and medical students; and (3) written evaluations offered by standardized patients in assessment forms. In particular, by attending to how a simulated patient makes the act of draping the patient a relevant communication skill, I explicate the material elements and moral implications of clinical communication. Finally, I consider the instructive role simulated patients play in medical education and how their standards build on and often stand in contrast to communication skills techniques. I conclude by making practical suggestions for communication skills training with simulated patients in medical education.

The Belgian experience in communication skills training

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isabelle Merckaert ◽  
Yves Libert ◽  
Darius Razavi
Keyword(s):  
Communication Skills ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Teaching Method ◽  
Clinical Skills ◽  
Skills Training ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Communication Skills Training ◽  
Design Studies ◽  
Training Programmes ◽  
The Impact

Communication is recognized as one of healthcare professionals’ core clinical skills. Even though many endeavours have been undertaken to help professionals acquire these skills, many questions remain unanswered in terms of the transfer of learned skills to clinical practice, and in terms of the impact of this transfer on patients’ care and well-being. In the last two decades, communication skills training programmes, designed for healthcare professionals working in cancer care, have been the focus of several research endeavours of a research group based in Belgium. The efficacy of designed programmes has been tested in studies using a controlled design. Studies varied in the type of teaching method, the length of training, and the outcome measures considered. Four programmes will be detailed in this chapter in terms of rationale and results. The conclusion will build upon these experiences to develop recommendations and discuss where we may go from there.

scholarly journals The effectiveness of communication skills training on intra family communicative patterns the junior male students of high school Ahar city

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 93-101
Author(s):  
Rasoul Chamani Ghalandari ◽  
Abdolah Shafie Abadi ◽  
Parivash Vakili ◽  
◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Skills Training ◽  
Male Students ◽  
Communication Skills Training ◽  
Communicative Patterns ◽  
Intra Family

SMIRK – developing a new mobile resource from an existing project

2014 ◽  
Vol 31 (7) ◽  
pp. 16-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marion Kelt
Keyword(s):  
Communication Skills ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Selection Process ◽  
Skills Training ◽  
Further Education ◽  
Virtual Learning Environment ◽  
Open Educational Resource ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Factors Affecting

Purpose – The purpose of this case study describes the process of designing and building SMIRK, a mobile information literacy and communication skills package. It describes the original package, SMILE, and the problems in its use and development. SMILE is not suitable for use on all mobile devices, so it had to be adapted and rewritten to meet our users’ needs. The selection of a software package and the practical issues involved with building the new product is outlined. Plans for future development and use in the university environment are described. Design/methodology/approach – The problems with the original package are described, and the requirements for a new version are listed. The software selection process and factors affecting it are outlined. Practical issues in the build are described and solutions presented. Findings – This paper presents the use of software designed for the creation of small mobile sites in a new “nested” way to provide a larger, easy to use mobile site. Research limitations/implications – The use of the existing and new sites is examined by the use of Google analytics, and feedback is collected using Google forms. This can be used to inform further development of the sites. SMIRK will be made available as an open educational resource (OER), and its reuse will be monitored using Jorum analytics. This should help inform the wider OER community in the field of information literacy. Practical implications – SMIRK will be embedded in virtual learning environment modules to support face-to-face training in information literacy and communication skills. This will be presented as a set of deep links directly to small information units which can be used by students on their smartphones or tablets. Social implications – SMIRK is available on the open web, so anyone can use it. It has been publicised at the Scottish information literacy group which contains members from all library sectors, so we hope that it will be used in further education (FE) and possibly secondary schools to provide a set of transferable skills. Originality/value – This case study describes a novel way of using Dreamweaver’s JQuery mobile function to create a new online product to support information literacy and communication skills training in the academic environment.

Communication Skills Training to Enhance Patient Adherence

2019 ◽  
pp. 103-112
Author(s):  
R. Ellen Pearlman ◽  
Calvin Chou
Keyword(s):  
Communication Skills ◽  
Patient Adherence ◽  
Skills Training ◽  
Communication Skills Training
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