The impact of standardized patient interviews on communication skills among pre-clinical medical students in an accelerated Baccalaureate/MD program: a mixed methods study.

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 21
Author(s):  
Edwin Kraemer ◽  
Nathan Driskill ◽  
Angellar Manguvo ◽  
Jennifer Quaintance
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Mixed Methods Study ◽  
Standardized Patient ◽  
Patient Interviews ◽  
The Impact

scholarly journals Medical Students’ Experiences and Outcomes Using a Virtual Human Simulation to Improve Communication Skills: Mixed Methods Study (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy C Guetterman ◽  
Rae Sakakibara ◽  
Srikar Baireddy ◽  
Frederick W Kron ◽  
Mark W Scerbo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Mixed Methods Study ◽  
Virtual Human ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Empathic Communication ◽  
Nonverbal Skills

BACKGROUND Attending to the wide range of communication behaviors that convey empathy is an important but often underemphasized concept to reduce errors in care, improve patient satisfaction, and improve cancer patient outcomes. A virtual human (VH)–based simulation, MPathic-VR, was developed to train health care providers in empathic communication with patients and in interprofessional settings and evaluated through a randomized controlled trial. OBJECTIVE This mixed methods study aimed to investigate the differential effects of a VH-based simulation developed to train health care providers in empathic patient-provider and interprofessional communication. METHODS We employed a mixed methods intervention design, involving a comparison of 2 quantitative measures—MPathic-VR–calculated scores and the objective structured clinical exam (OSCE) scores—with qualitative reflections by medical students about their experiences. This paper is a secondary, focused analysis of intervention arm data from the larger trial. Students at 3 medical schools in the United States (n=206) received simulation to improve empathic communication skills. We conducted analysis of variance, thematic text analysis, and merging mixed methods analysis. RESULTS OSCE scores were significantly improved for learners in the intervention group (mean 0.806, SD 0.201) compared with the control group (mean 0.752, SD 0.198; <italic>F</italic><sub>1,414</sub>=6.09; <italic>P</italic>=.01). Qualitative analysis revealed 3 major positive themes for the MPathic-VR group learners: gaining useful communication skills, learning awareness of nonverbal skills in addition to verbal skills, and feeling motivated to learn more about communication. Finally, the results of the mixed methods analysis indicated that most of the variation between high, middle, and lower performers was noted about nonverbal behaviors. Medium and high OSCE scorers most often commented on the importance of nonverbal communication. Themes of motivation to learn about communication were only present in middle and high scorers. CONCLUSIONS VHs are a promising strategy for improving empathic communication in health care. Higher performers seemed most engaged to learn, particularly nonverbal skills.

scholarly journals Shared Living Experiences by Physicians have a Positive Impact on Mental Health Attitudes and Stigma among Medical Students: A Mixed-Methods Study

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 238212052096807
Author(s):  
Andrés Martin ◽  
Julie Chilton ◽  
Cecilia Paasche ◽  
Nicole Nabatkhorian ◽  
Hilary Gortler ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Thematic Analysis ◽  
Role Models ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Mixed Methods Study ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
The Impact

Introduction: Medical culture can make trainees feel like there is neither room for mistakes, nor space for personal shortcomings in the makeup of physicians. A dearth of role models who can exemplify that it is acceptable to need support compounds barriers to help-seeking once students struggle. We conducted a mixed-methods study to assess the impact of physicians sharing their living experiences with medical students. Methods: Second-year medical students participated, through synchronized videoconferencing, in an intervention consisting of 3 physicians who shared personal histories of vulnerability (e.g. failure on high-stakes exams; immigration and acculturation stress; and personal psychopathology, including treatment and recovery), followed by facilitated, small-group discussions. For the quantitative component, students completed the Opening Minds to Stigma Scale for Health Care Providers (OMS-HC) before and after the intervention. For the qualitative component, we conducted focus groups to explore the study intervention. We analyzed anonymized transcripts using thematic analysis aided by NVivo software. Results: We invited all students in the class (n = 61, 46% women) to participate in the research component. Among the 53 participants (87% of the class), OMS-HC scores improved after the intervention ( P = .002), driven by the Attitudes ( P = .003) and Disclosure ( P < .001) subscales. We conducted 4 focus groups, each with a median of 6 participants (range, 5-7). We identified, through iterative thematic analysis of focus group transcripts, active components before, during, and after the intervention, with unexpected vulnerability and unarmored mutuality as particularly salient. Conclusions: Sharing histories of personal vulnerability by senior physicians can lessen stigmatized views of mental health and normalize help-seeking among medical students. Synchronous videoconferencing proved to be an effective delivery mechanism for the intervention in a ‘virtual wellness’ format. Candid sharing by physicians has the potential to enhance students’ ability to recognize, address, and seek help for their own mental health needs.

scholarly journals Medical Students’ Experiences and Outcomes Using a Virtual Human Simulation to Improve Communication Skills: Mixed Methods Study

10.2196/15459 ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (11) ◽  
pp. e15459 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy C Guetterman ◽  
Rae Sakakibara ◽  
Srikar Baireddy ◽  
Frederick W Kron ◽  
Mark W Scerbo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Mixed Methods Study ◽  
Virtual Human ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Empathic Communication ◽  
Nonverbal Skills

Background Attending to the wide range of communication behaviors that convey empathy is an important but often underemphasized concept to reduce errors in care, improve patient satisfaction, and improve cancer patient outcomes. A virtual human (VH)–based simulation, MPathic-VR, was developed to train health care providers in empathic communication with patients and in interprofessional settings and evaluated through a randomized controlled trial. Objective This mixed methods study aimed to investigate the differential effects of a VH-based simulation developed to train health care providers in empathic patient-provider and interprofessional communication. Methods We employed a mixed methods intervention design, involving a comparison of 2 quantitative measures—MPathic-VR–calculated scores and the objective structured clinical exam (OSCE) scores—with qualitative reflections by medical students about their experiences. This paper is a secondary, focused analysis of intervention arm data from the larger trial. Students at 3 medical schools in the United States (n=206) received simulation to improve empathic communication skills. We conducted analysis of variance, thematic text analysis, and merging mixed methods analysis. Results OSCE scores were significantly improved for learners in the intervention group (mean 0.806, SD 0.201) compared with the control group (mean 0.752, SD 0.198; F1,414=6.09; P=.01). Qualitative analysis revealed 3 major positive themes for the MPathic-VR group learners: gaining useful communication skills, learning awareness of nonverbal skills in addition to verbal skills, and feeling motivated to learn more about communication. Finally, the results of the mixed methods analysis indicated that most of the variation between high, middle, and lower performers was noted about nonverbal behaviors. Medium and high OSCE scorers most often commented on the importance of nonverbal communication. Themes of motivation to learn about communication were only present in middle and high scorers. Conclusions VHs are a promising strategy for improving empathic communication in health care. Higher performers seemed most engaged to learn, particularly nonverbal skills.

scholarly journals Acute care nurses’ perceptions of leadership, teamwork, turnover intention and patient safety – a mixed methods study

BMC Nursing ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shahram Zaheer ◽  
Liane Ginsburg ◽  
Hannah J. Wong ◽  
Kelly Thomson ◽  
Lorna Bain ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Patient Safety ◽  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Turnover Intention ◽  
Interactive Effect ◽  
Mixed Methods Study ◽  
Senior Leadership ◽  
Healthcare Organizations ◽  
Staff Perceptions ◽  
Leadership Support ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background This study contributes to a small but growing body of literature on how context influences perceptions of patient safety in healthcare settings. We examine the impact of senior leadership support for safety, supervisory leadership support for safety, teamwork, and turnover intention on overall patient safety grade. Interaction effects of predictors on perceptions of patient safety are also examined. Methods In this mixed methods study, cross-sectional survey data (N = 185) were collected from nurses and non-physician healthcare professionals. Semi-structured interview data (N = 15) were collected from nurses. The study participants worked in intensive care, general medicine, mental health, or the emergency department of a large community hospital in Southern Ontario. Results Hierarchical regression analyses showed that staff perceptions of senior leadership (p < 0.001), teamwork (p < 0.01), and turnover intention (p < 0.01) were significantly associated with overall patient safety grade. The interactive effect of teamwork and turnover intention on overall patient safety grade was also found to be significant (p < 0.05). The qualitative findings corroborated the survey results but also helped expand the characteristics of the study’s key concepts (e.g., teamwork within and across professional boundaries) and why certain statistical relationships were found to be non-significant (e.g., nurse interviewees perceived the safety specific responsibilities of frontline supervisors much more broadly compared to the narrower conceptualization of the construct in the survey). Conclusions The results of the current study suggest that senior leadership, teamwork, and turnover intention significantly impact nursing staff perceptions of patient safety. Leadership is a modifiable contextual factor and resources should be dedicated to strengthen relational competencies of healthcare leaders. Healthcare organizations must also proactively foster inter and intra-professional collaboration by providing teamwork educational workshops or other on-site learning opportunities (e.g., simulation training). Healthcare organizations would benefit by considering the interactive effect of contextual factors as another lever for patient safety improvement, e.g., lowering staff turnover intentions would maximize the positive impact of teamwork improvement initiatives on patient safety.

A mixed-methods study of English vocabulary for medical purposes: medical students’ needs, difficulties, and strategies

2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Barry Lee Reynolds ◽  
Xiaofang Zhang ◽  
Chen Ding
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Mixed Methods Study ◽  
Vocabulary Size ◽  
School Students ◽  
Teacher Interviews ◽  
Vocabulary Strategies ◽  
Medical Vocabulary

Abstract This mixed-methods study investigated the English medical vocabulary strategies, needs, and difficulties of Taiwanese medical school students via an open- and closed-ended questionnaire (n = 17), a test measuring vocabulary size (n = 17), student interviews (n = 5), and teacher interviews (n = 3). Students reported using some vocabulary strategies more than others. A statistically significant negative relationship between students’ English vocabulary size and their use of word cards for vocabulary learning was also revealed. Through analysis of the interview data gathered from the medical students and their English teachers, five vocabulary learning difficulties faced by the medical students were uncovered: (1) nonexistent intentional English vocabulary learning, (2) stagnant specialized medical English vocabulary acquisition, (3) lack of sufficient contextualized academic English writing practice with newly encountered specialized medical vocabulary; (4) lack of teacher feedback on the students’ vocabulary use; and (5) lack of pedagogical communication among faculty. The pedagogical implications of these results were discussed with a focus on improving students’ vocabulary learning efficiency in light of their specialized English medical vocabulary needs.

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