Elizabete Loureiro

A European consensus on learning objectives for a core communication curriculum in health care professions

OBJECTIVE To develop learning objectives for a core communication curriculum for all health care professions and to survey the acceptability and suitability of the curriculum for undergraduate European health care education. METHODS Learning objectives for a Health Professions Core Communication Curriculum (HPCCC) in undergraduate education were developed based on international literature and expert knowledge by an international group of communication experts representing different health care professions. A Delphi process technique was used to gather feedback and to provide a consensus from various health care disciplines within Europe. RESULTS 121 communication experts from 15 professional fields and 16 European countries participated in the consensus process. The overall acceptance of the core communication curriculum was high. 61 core communication objectives were rated on a five-point scale and found to be relevant for undergraduate education in health care professions. A thematic analysis revealed the benefits of the HPCCC. CONCLUSIONS AND PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS Based on a broad European expert consensus, the Health Professions Core Communication Curriculum can be used as a guide for teaching communication inter- and multi-professionally in undergraduate education in health care. It can serve for curriculum development and support the goals of the Bologna process.

Students' psychological distress in an English program embedded in a medical school in a non-English speaking country

Objectives To clarify if medical students in an English program in a non-English speaking country are exposed to a higher risk of psychological distress compared to comparable local medical students. Methods An online survey was conducted for all medical students both in the English program exclusively for international students (n=235) and in the local program (n=1043) at the Palacky University in the Czech Republic. The Medical Student Well-Being Index (MSWBI) was used to define the student’s psychological distress. Logistic regressions were conducted to find an effect of the study program on the students’ psychological distress, adjusted by age, study year, marital status, residential status, and frequency of contact with significant others, stratified by gender. Results 44% (n=68) of the respondents in the English program screened positive for psychological distress, and 53% (n=221) in the local program. There was an interaction between gender and program in the association with psychological distress. The higher prevalence of psychological distress in the local program was likely attributed to female students who had frequent contacts with their significant others. Conclusions Psychological distress was highly prevalent in a Czech medical school, but there was no overall difference between the international students in the English program and the comparable local medical students.

Teaching and assessment of clinical communication skills: Lessons learned from a SWOT analysis of Portuguese Angolan and Mozambican Medical Education ☆

HighlightsCCS training lacks a formal structure with substantial variation of the teaching process.The interviews promoted, amongst important stakeholders, a rise in awareness of this situation and how these skills can enhance the quality of clinical practice, encouraging curricular change.A communication skills teaching model: CoSTProMed is suggested for curriculum integration. Background: The importance of clinical communication skills (CCS) teaching and assessment is increasingly recognized in medical education. There is a lack of outcome‐based research about CCS teaching and assessment processes in Portuguese medical education. Our goal is to conduct a SWOT analysis of this process in Portugal, Angola and Mozambique in order to contribute to the establishment of an action plan for more effective CCS teaching and assessment in medical curricula. Methods: Between 2010 and 2012, semi‐structured interviews focused on the state of the art of teaching and assessment of clinical communication skills were conducted with key stakeholders of medical courses in Portugal, Angola and Mozambique. The design corresponds to an exploratory, descriptive and cross‐sectional study, with the analysis of the recorded interviews. Interview transcripts were analyzed to identify salient themes/coding template in their discussions of the CCS teaching process. The coding and analysis of the surveys is qualitative. Results: 87 interviews were performed at the 8 Portuguese, 1 Angolan and 1 Mozambican medical schools. Results indicate that the teaching and assessment process of CCS is in the beginning stages with these commonalities noted: (i) Variability amongst faculty in the teaching and assessment methods, (ii) disconnection of CCS between basic and clinical cycles, (iii) content and process skills and (iv) faculty development. Conclusions: CCS training lacks a formal structure with considerable variation of the CCS teaching process in these countries. The interviews promoted a rise in awareness of this situation and how these skills can enhance the quality of curricular change. Some important opportunities for the development and implementation of a framework of an integrated communication skills curriculum such as curricular reforms and well‐established cooperation and networks were identified. The acknowledgement of the importance of integrating these skills in ME by key stake‐holders and students in institutions and the identification of champions motivated to commit to the effort are strengths that should be considered to integrate and enhance CCS in the medical curricula.