Evaluation of therapeutic relationship skills training for mental health professionals: the Therapeutic Relationship Enabling Programme (TREP).

Faith Liao,David Murphy

doi:10.15694/mep.2019.000112.1

Abstract

This article was migrated. The article was marked as recommended. Background: A 3-day workshop in Taiwan, developed in accordance with Carl Rogers' person-centred theory, used an experiential-learning pedagogy and a helping learning technology mPath. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a short-term course for mental health professional students assessing to the acquisition of therapeutic relationship competencies. Objective:To evaluate the training effects and investigate any changes in the level of therapeutic relationship competence of the participants before, at the end and two weeks after the intervention. Methods:A sample of 59 mental health professional students from 7 medical schools studying in nursing, occupational therapy, medicine, clinical psychology and other specialities with the completion of psychiatry-relevant courses. 26 of 59 mental health professional students volunteered to form the experimental group, and the controls were recruited using the snowball sampling technique. All of them completed the Barrett-Lennard Relationship Inventory OS-40 three times. Mean values and statistical significance tests were computed to compare the results. Results:Within 3 days, the mental health professional students in the experimental group (N=26) completed the Therapeutic Relationship Enabling Programme (TREP) and showed a statistically significant level of change (Mean Difference= +9.5, p= 0.002), which was in contrast to the outcome of the control group (N=33, Mean Difference= +0.18, p= 0.683), in the therapeutic relationship competences. The effecting growth curve of therapeutic relationship competence in the experimental group continually inclined two weeks after the intervention (Mean Difference= +19.423, p= 0.000) while the control group reflected a decline in therapeutic relationship competence (Mean Difference= -0.515, p= 0.812). Conclusions: A person-centred-theory-based training workshop with the use of a specially designed technology enhanced Taiwanese mental health professional students' learning on therapeutic relationship competences. A further investigation into learning person-centred therapeutic relationship qualities in the workshop as an innovative pedagogy and learning approach for medical education would be recommended.

Highlights

Physicians are trained for the major purpose of preparing themselves to provide a fusion of medical science and social science in which emphasis is often placed upon the importance of developing empathy towards patients in medical practice
Medical trainings have seen increases to the total number of teaching hours assigned to psychiatry rotations, revising and expanding psychiatric teaching programs throughout the whole course, developing clinical placements in hospital wards starting in connection with other medical services, and developing the technique of psychiatric examination to parallel that of the physical diagnosis process (Dale, Bhavsar and Bhugra, 2007; Bayne, 2011; Vestermark, 1952; Thompson, 1953; Law et al, 2011)
This study examines the effectiveness of a therapeutic relationship training programme (TREP) for medical and psychiatryrelated health professionals that used a combination of experiential learning methods supported by new technologies

Summary

Introduction

Physicians are trained for the major purpose of preparing themselves to provide a fusion of medical science and social science in which emphasis is often placed upon the importance of developing empathy towards patients in medical practice. As literature from the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC), General Medical Council (GMC) in the United Kingdom and the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) in Canada and the United States shows, empathy enhancement is one of the essential goals for learning in medical education This is to ensure medical students’ competency in developing and maintaining therapeutic relationships which can be relevant to patients’ prognosis (Stephien and Baernstein, 2006; Dale, Bhavsar and Bhugra, 2007; Shaprio, 2008; Bayne, 2011). This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a short-term course for mental health professional students assessing to the acquisition of therapeutic relationship competencies

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion