Abstract
Abstract: Objective: To assess the expectation that the appraisal of students’ interpersonal communication skills in prior appointments affects women’s motives for consenting to or dissenting from the presence of a student and thereby their ultimate receptiveness regarding the learner’s involvement when participating in gynecological consultations. Methods: Face-to-face interviews were used to compile questionnaire data from 469 outpatients at the Brasília University Hospital. We used t-tests to evaluate the differences between the scores of the two motive-related scales of patients with prior experience of student involvement and those of patients without it, as well as contingency analyses to assess the association between the groups of women and an index of their receptiveness to students’ participation in the consultation. Moreover, we performed correlation analyses to verify the interrelationships between the scales and the levels of association of these measures with the index of receptiveness as an outcome. Results: Compared with inexperienced patients, experienced patients exhibited significantly broader receptiveness to students’ participation in consultations (chi-squared = 20.49, df = 3, P < .001; Cramer’s V = 209, P < .001). Broader receptiveness was positively correlated (rho = .314, P < .001) with their motivation to consent to and negatively (rho = -.454, P < .001) correlated with their motivation to dissent from students’ presence at coming consultations. The motivation to consent was significantly higher (P < .001) in experienced women (M = 4.58, SD = .55, n = 408) than in inexperienced ones (M = 4.31, SD = .68, n = 61). The opposite result was true for the motivation to dissent (M = 2.35, SD = .94 vs. M = 2.70, SD = 1.02; P = .007). Notably, for those 408 women, their appraisals of students’ interpersonal communication skills (in a prior consultation) positively correlated (rho = .236, P < .001) with their motivation to consent to and negatively with their motivation to dissent from students’ presence (rho = -.208, P < .001). Conclusion: The findings have implications for both the patients’ role in the gynecological education of medical students and the learners’ qualification in the clinical interview and, therefore, for the benefit of women’s healthcare.
Highlights
Medical students’ involvement in gynecological consultations is of the essence for a useful educational experience in women’s medical care
The Principal Component Analysis (PCA) of the results of the 4-item questioning about motives for consenting to the students’ presence at the consultation yielded a single component, which accounted for 47.3% of the total variance
For the 6-item questioning about motives for dissenting from student attendance, PCA yielded a single component, which accounted for 40.8% of the total variance
Summary
Medical students’ involvement in gynecological consultations is of the essence for a useful educational experience in women’s medical care. Thereby, as future physicians working in the country’s healthcare system, the students shall meet the health needs of women. To reach such a desideratum, the willingness of women to accept student engagement in their consultations is crucial. Obstacles to learners’ involvement could prevent adequate clinical training and the choice of specialty training in Ob-Gyn, which is an unhelpful outcome in times of growing demands for the provision of women’s health services[5]. A current review summarizes the learners’ perceptions of the patients’ factors related to, and the potential reasons for the gender differences in clinical opportunities and outcomes[6]
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