Impact Of Communication Skills Training Research Articles

Physician perspectives on communication quality in pediatric care.

We aimed to explore physician perspectives on communication quality across pediatric contexts. We conducted semi-structured interviews over a 4-month period. Purposive sampling was conducted to ensure a broad sampling of pediatricians from multiple subspecialties and practice settings. Interviews were conducted until thematic saturation was reached. An interview guide was created based on existing literature. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed for key themes. Eleven pediatricians enrolled in our study. Following thematic analysis, results were organized into four primary themes: Communication Education, High Quality Communication; Low Quality Communication; and Communication Factors and Barriers. Participants prioritized information transfer as a key aspect of communication quality. They identified communication quality as having wellness implications for clinicians. Participants prioritize information transfer and state that clinicians often neglect bidirectional information exchange. Participants often lacked formal communication skills training which may make it difficult to navigate common barriers such as language and cultural differences, lack of time, and interprofessional dysfunction. Formal communication skills training may help overcome challenges and may enhance physician wellness while improving patient care. While the importance of clinician-parent communication in pediatric settings has been established, little is known about provider perceptions of communication quality. Participants identified information transfer as a key aspect of communication quality, often neglecting bidirectional information exchange. Participants often lacked formal communication skills training which may make it difficult to navigate common barriers such as language and cultural differences, lack of time, and interprofessional dysfunction. Formal communication skills training may help with these challenges and may enhance physician wellness while improving patient care. More work is needed to explore the impact of communication skills training on each of these factors.

Impact of a training program on hospital pharmacists' patient-centered communication attitudes and behaviors

BackgroundEffective communication that integrates the value of patient-centered care is important in healthcare encounters. Communication skills training (CST) has been indicated as effective in improving patient-centered communication behaviors. However, there is a paucity of studies on the impact of CST among Malaysian hospital pharmacists. ObjectiveThis study aimed to evaluate the effects of a patient-centered CST program on patient-centered communication scores, communication self-efficacy, and attitudes toward concordance among pharmacists in public hospitals. MethodsA communication skills training (CST) program was conducted among hospital pharmacists. This training intervention was developed based on patient-centered communication frameworks and techniques, namely the Four Habits Model and motivational interviewing. A pre-test/post-test quasi-experimental design was implemented for the evaluation. Pharmacists underwent pre-test/post-test audiotaped simulated consultations and completed questionnaires, including the Revised United States–Leeds Attitudes Toward Concordance scale (RUS-LATCon) and Communication Self-Efficacy scale. The Four Habits Coding Scheme (FHCS) was used to evaluate patient-centered communication scores from the audiotapes, and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used to analyze for differences in the pre- and post-intervention scores. ResultsA total of 38 pharmacists from four tertiary hospitals participated in this study and completed the pre-test. However, due to the impact of COVID-19, only 23 pharmacists completed the post-test data collection. Improvements were noted in the FHCS scores post-training, including items related to exploring patients' concerns, acceptability, and barriers to treatment. Based on the questionnaire, there was an improvement in recognizing patients' needs and potential medication uncertainty and an increase in the overall communication self-efficacy scores after the training. ConclusionsCST may help improve the adoption of patient-centered communication in pharmacists' consultations with patients.

Impact Of Communication Skills Training in Postgraduate Medical Education

Background: Effective communication is a key feature of optimal doctor-patient relationship. As the postgraduate curriculum lacks standardized teaching and assessment, this study aimed to assess effectiveness of training program on communication skills of postgraduate medical students. Materials and methods: A prospective interventional study was conducted among first year postgraduate medical students from different clinical specialty. Training program included introduction to principles of communication with basics of doctor-patient relationship, administering informed consent, breaking bad news and counselling patients with HIV/cancer. Pre-test and post-test skill assessment by Faculty and postgraduate (PG) self-rating was carried out using KEECC-A Assessment tool for seven core communication competencies. Perception of students on training program was collected via feedback questionnaire. Results: Forty-three postgraduate medical students participated. Statistically significant increase in communication skills scores post training was observed with mean post-test assessment scores of 24.26±2.94, p<0.001(faculty rating), 25.19±3.76, p<0.001(PG self-rating) and high degree of internal consistency was found. Students perceived the training program as valuable and highlighted its importance as a part of curriculum. Conclusion: Training program significantly enhanced communication skills of postgraduate medical students. Integration of standardized teaching and assessment of communication skills is essential for better healthcare practice and optimal doctor-patient relationship.

A Review of the Evidence and Recommendations on Communication Skills and the Patient–Provider Relationship: A Rome Foundation Working Team Report

Over several decades, changes in health care have negatively impacted meaningful communication between the patient and provider and adversely affected their relationship. Under increasing time pressure, physicians rely more on technology than face-to-face time gathering data to make clinical decisions. As a result, they find it more challenging to understand the illness context and fully address patient needs. Patients experience dissatisfaction and a diminution of their role in the care process. For patients with disorders of gut-brain interaction, stigma leads to greater care dissatisfaction, as there is no apparent structural basis to legitimize the symptoms. Recent evidence suggests that practical communication skills can improve the patient-provider relationship (PPR) and clinical outcomes, but these data are limited. The Rome Foundation convened a multidisciplinary working team to review the scientific evidence with the following aims: a) to study the effect of communication skills on patient satisfaction and outcomes by performing an evidence-based review; b) to characterize the influence of sociocultural factors, health care system constraints, patient perspective, and telehealth on the PPR; c) to review the measurement and impact of communication skills training on these outcomes; and d) to make recommendations to improve communication skills training and the PPR. Evidence supports the fact that interventions targeting patient-provider interactions improve population health, patient and provider experience, and costs. Communication skills training leads to improved patient satisfaction and outcomes. The following are relevant factors to consider in establishing an effective PPR: addressing health care system constraints; incorporating sociocultural factors and the role of gender, age, and chronic illness; and considering the changing role of telehealth on the PPR. We concluded that effective communication skills can improve the PPR and health outcomes. This is an achievable goal through training and system change. More research is needed to confirm these findings.

Efficacy of Communication Skills Training in Marital Disturbance

Background: Marital disturbance widely impact the quality of marriage in couples. Besides, the lack of communication skills among couples is considered as one of the most significant personal factors influencing marriage distress. Therefore, this research aimed to determine the impact of communication skills training on marital disturbance. Methods: In this interventional study, the target population was all couples residing in the marginal regions of Birjand City, in 2016. Sixty couples (N=120) were randomly selected and assigned into two groups of intervention (30 couples) and control (30 couples). The data collection instrument consisted of two sections of private information and the Pines couple burnout measure. Results: Educational intervention was conducted for the intervention group in six sessions of 120 minutes. The questionnaire was completed before and three months after the intervention, in both groups. Then, the obtained data were analyzed using the chi-squared test, independent t-test, and paired t-test, considering the significant level of 0.05, in SPSS V. 18. The Mean±SD age was 32.27±6.24 years and 34.85±5.74 years in the intervention and control groups, respectively. Also, the Mean±SD marriage life of couples was 7.33±5.29 years and 9.57±5.73 years in the intervention and control groups, respectively. Conclusion: The mean of marital disturbance modifications, marital distress, and physical and emotional loss significantly differed between the intervention and control groups (P<0.05). Communication skills training can significantly reduce marital distress and its dimensions, including physical, emotional, and mental retardation, in couples living in the suburb.

Longitudinal study: Impact of communication skills training and a traineeship on medical students’ attitudes toward communication skills

ObjectivesTo study longitudinally students’ attitudes towards communication skills (CS) in order to examine whether CS training (CST) has an enduring impact on medical students’ attitudes toward being a lifelong learner of CS. Methods105 students completed the Communication Skills Attitude Scale at 4 times: before CST, after CST and before and after a traineeship. ResultsOur final sample size is 105 students. CST improved the attitudes of our students toward CS, and the traineeship stabilised those attitudes. However, while the improvement in positive attitudes was sustained over time, negative attitudes increased 6 months after CST. ConclusionCST using experiential methods in a safe environment has the potential to improve students’ attitudes towards CS. A short traineeship in general medicine allows students to quickly integrate CST into clinical practice, without deteriorating their attitudes toward CS. However, 6 months of medical lessons without CST reinforces students’ negative attitudes. Practice implicationsTo avoid the deterioration of attitudes over time, CST should be continuous or at least spaced at intervals less than 6 months and supported by the institutional authorities. In addition, placing the CST close to an observation traineeship in general practice seems an interesting way to prevent further deterioration of attitudes.

The Impact of Communication Skills Training on Social Empowerment and Social Adjustment of Slow-paced Adolescents

The present study was an attempt to investigate the effect of communication skills training on social empowerment and social adjustment of so-called «slow-paced» adolescents (ie those whoo need psychological, physical and emotional drivers to actualize their potential abilities). The research method was a control-Group Pretest-Posttest Quasi-Experimental design. The population of the study consisted of all slow-paced female students aged 13-15 years in Ghaenat city (South Khorasan Province) during 2019. 24 samples selected from the population through convenient sampling were randomly assigned to two experimental and control groups (12 individuals in each group). Teachers or parents of both subject groups were asked to fill the questionnaires (pre-test). In the next step, the experimental group was presented with ten 45-minute sessions on communication skills, and the control group did not receive any training. In the end, both groups responded to the research instrument (post-test). Vineland social maturity scale was used as the data collection instrument. The collected data were analyzed through covariance analysis using SPSS software version 22. The results showed that communication skills training has a significant impact on social empowerment (F = 15.47, p = 0.001) and social adjustment (F = 49.64, p = 0.001). In other words, it can be argued that the experimental and control groups significantly differ from each other in terms of the communication skills training impacts on social empowerment and its components as well as social maturity. In conclusion, communication skills training significantly improves the social empowerment and social maturity of slow-paced female adolescents in the experimental group.

Gynecologic oncology providers endorse practice-changing impact of communication skills training

ObjectiveEffective communication improves patient outcomes and is crucial to good patient care. Communication skills training (CST) has been shown to improve communication skills in non-gynecologic oncology specialties. We sought to develop and test CST for gynecologic oncology (GO) providers. MethodsWe developed and conducted a two-day CST workshop with an interprofessional group of 20 GO providers over two years. Participants were surveyed pre-workshop, immediately post-workshop and one month post-workshop regarding self-assessed preparedness to handle challenging communication tasks, workshop evaluation and impact on practice. McNemar's tests were used for pre-post comparisons. ResultsOf 12 challenging communication tasks assessed, all participants reported improvement in at least one, with a median of 10. The proportion of participants feeling more than “somewhat prepared” improved significantly for all communication tasks assessed (p < 0.05); improvement was sustained one month later. One month post-workshop, 86% reported thinking about what they had been taught at least weekly and 93% reported encountering situations where they used their CST skills at least weekly. Rates of reported practice-changing impact were >75% for each communication skill. All participants rated the CST educational quality very good or excellent and strongly agreed it should be required of all GO clinicians. ConclusionsParticipants felt the workshop provided high-quality, practice-changing education. As a result of the workshop, participants reported statistically significant, sustained improvement in preparedness to handle challenging communication tasks. CST for GO providers is feasible, with high rates of perceived effectiveness and impact on clinical practice. CST workshops should be integrated into GO training.

Two monologues do not make a dialogue: the need for medical specialty–specific communication workshops: population-based study

AimIncreasing attacks on healthcare personnel in India have highlighted the need for improved communication between staff and patients. Currently, communication skill workshops target doctors and nurses, overlooking a key player...

Goals of Care Conversations in Advanced Cancer: Patient Perceptions Versus Reality (FR419B)

•Describe important components of goals of care conversations•Recognize the importance of time on recall of goals of care conversations Goals of Care discussions (GoC) should include information about cancer treatment, prognosis and elicit patients’ value. To determine the impact of communication skills training, it is imperative to assess concordance of patient report and physician conduct of GoC. Evaluate whether patients perceptions of GoC are an accurate measure of oncologist performance. We randomized solid tumor oncologists and their cancer patients with <2 year prognosis to receive a communication skills and coaching model at 4 hospitals. We audio-recorded the 3 month post-imaging visit following 1st line chemotherapy and surveyed patients. GoC were considered to have occurred if the oncologist elicited values and discussed prognosis or treatment. We define patient perception of a GoC conversation as patient report that their oncologist talked about the likely outcome of cancer and clarified things most important to them. To assess the impact of recall, we assessed the number of days from recording to survey. We enrolled 22 oncologists and recorded 135 visits. On average, oncologists were 44 years old (32-66) and in practice 14.5 years (5-40). Patients’ mean age was 65 years (25-89); 46% female, 44% White, 9% Latino & 32% black. Overall, GoC were reported by 47% of patients compared with 15% assessed on audio recordings. Sixty-seven percent of patients were surveyed within one day of the recorded visit (0-49). For patients surveyed within 1 day, 54% reported having GoC compared with 33% for those with later survey completion (p=0.02). Kappa between perceived GoC and practice was 0.02. Overall rates of GoC are low. There is little agreement between patient perception and actual practice. Patients overestimate conduct of GoC and this association diminishes over time.

The Impact of Communication Skills Training on Cardiology Fellows' and Attending Physicians' Perceived Comfort with Difficult Conversations.

Cardiologists need to decide which treatments are appropriate for seriously ill patients and whether they align with patient goals. Reconciling medical options with patients' wishes requires skilled communication. Although there is evidence that communication is teachable, few cardiologists receive formal training. To demonstrate that providing communication skills training to cardiologists is feasible and improves their perceived preparedness (PP) for leading difficult conversations. CardioTalk is a workshop to improve communication through short didactic sessions followed by interactions with standardized patients. Competencies include giving bad news, defining goals of care, responding to emotion, supporting religious beliefs, and withdrawing therapies. Settings/Subjects: First year cardiology fellows, heart failure fellows, and cardiac intensive care unit attendings. Surveys evaluated the curriculum's efficacy and learners' PP before and after the workshop. Eight cardiology attendings and 20 cardiology fellows participated. Eighty-nine percent reported having any prior education in communication. Fellows reported more prior education than attendings (100% vs. 62.5%, p = 0.017). Level of PP improved in all competencies for all learners. Ninety-six percent of respondents would recommend the training to peers. All attendings felt that it should be required for cardiologists in the cardiac intensive care unit and reported improved preparedness to teach communication to learners. All learners improved in levels of PP in communication competencies. CardioTalk is the first described training program that prepares cardiologists for the challenges they face when having conversations with seriously ill patients.

The Impact of Communication Skills Training on the Adjustment of Opiate Addicts

The present research was aimed to study the impact of communication skills training on the adjustment of opiate addicts. The research was quasi experimental. Statistical population consisted of all addicts in Tehran in 2014-15. Single-stage cluster sampling method was used in the present research so that one of the rehabilitation camps in West of Tehran was selected. Afterwards, 30 addicts were chosen as a sample size using simple random sampling method and were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. Data collection was carried out based on Bell Adjustment Questionnaire (1961). The reliability was investigated using Cronbach's alpha and the obtained value was equal to 0.84. Moreover, content validity was employed in order to measure the validity of the test which the questionnaire was approved by the relevant experts and scholars in this regard. Analysis of the obtained data was performed using SPSS software in two parts of descriptive and inferential (Covariance Analysis). Findings indicated that communication skills training leads to an increase in the level of adjustment of addicts in every five dimensions of social adjustment, family adjustment, emotional adjustment, physical adjustment and occupational adjustment.

The Effectiveness of Communication Skills Training on Marital Conflicts and its Different Aspects in Women

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of communication skills training on marital conflicts and its aspects in married women who referred to health centers of Gonabad in 2013. At this experimental study with pretest-posttest design and control group, Sixty married women, who have referred to health centers of Gonabad city, had been randomly selected and distributed in two groups as case and control. First, the pretest was administered for both groups. The pretest was consisted of a questionnaire on demographic information, communication skills and marital conflicts. Then the case group was presented with ten 45-minute sessions on communication skills. At the end of trainings, which lasted for 2 weeks, both groups filled the questionnaires. The data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 20 and independent and paired T-tests. The results showed In comparison to control group, communication skills training significantly reduces marital conflicts in case group (P=0.001). These trainings had also significantly influenced the five aspects of marital conflicts of case group including cooperation (P=0.048), sexual relationship (P=0.001), emotional reactions (P=0.019), personal communication with relatives (P=0.033) and familial communication with spouse relatives and friends (P=0.20), but did not influence the other 2 aspects which are children support (P=0.13) and financial issues (P=0.12). Regarding the impact of communication skills training on marital conflicts, it is recommended to train the women with marital conflicts with communication skills.

Care of the dying: how do we replace the Liverpool Care Pathway?

Death is an inescapable certainty of life. Variability in care for dying persons, however, is present. The Liverpool Care Pathway (LCP) sought to guide care for the last days of life but was phased out after intense scrutiny. A governmental report and rapid review of evidence were considered alongside mass and social media reporting. An evidence review of end-of-life care was undertaken. Any person's death is inherently challenging. Much consideration must be given to holistic needs when approaching death. Communication skills may be lacking for professional and patient alike. The LCP became flawed in use rather than intention or principle. Seeming financial gains from death were concerning to all. We have responsibility for making choices prospectively in order for them to influence our care when we are dying. Normalization of death is key on both micro- and macro communication levels. Perceptions of relevant terminology; review of the definition of dying; improved recognition of the dying process and measuring the impact of communication skills training.

Nonverbal Accommodation in Health Care Communication

This exploratory study examined patterns of nonverbal accommodation within health care interactions and investigated the impact of communication skills training and gender concordance on nonverbal accommodation behavior. The Nonverbal Accommodation Analysis System (NAAS) was used to code the nonverbal behavior of physicians and patients within 45 oncology consultations. Cases were then placed in one of seven categories based on patterns of accommodation observed across the interaction. Results indicated that across all NAAS behavior categories, physician–patient interactions were most frequently categorized as joint convergence, followed closely by asymmetrical-patient convergence. Among paraverbal behaviors, talk time, interruption, and pausing were most frequently characterized by joint convergence. Among nonverbal behaviors, eye contact, laughing, and gesturing were most frequently categorized as asymmetrical-physician convergence. Differences were predominantly nonsignificant in terms of accommodation behavior between pre- and post-communication skills training interactions. Only gesturing proved significant, with post-communication skills training interactions more likely to be categorized as joint convergence or asymmetrical-physician convergence. No differences in accommodation were noted between gender-concordant and nonconcordant interactions. The importance of accommodation behavior in health care communication is considered from a patient-centered care perspective.

The effect of communication skills training on quality of care, self-efficacy, job satisfaction and communication skills rate of nurses in hospitals of tabriz, iran.

Having an effective relationship with the patient in the process of treatment is essential. Nurses must have communication skills in order to establish effective relationships with the patients. This study evaluated the impact of communication skills training on quality of care, self-efficacy, job satisfaction and communication skills of nurses. This is an experimental study with a control group that has been done in 2012. The study sample consisted of 73 nurses who work in hospitals of Tabriz; they were selected by proportional randomizing method. The intervention was only conducted on the experimental group. In order to measure the quality of care 160 patients, who had received care by nurses, participated in this study. The Data were analyzed by SPSS (ver.13). Comparing the mean scores of communication skills showed a statistically significant difference between control and experimental groups after intervention. The paired t-test showed a statistically significant difference in the experimental group before and after the intervention. Independent t-test showed a statistically significant difference between the rate of quality of care in patients of control and experimental groups after the intervention. The results showed that the training of communication skills can increase the nurse's rate of communication skills and cause elevation in quality of nursing care. Therefore, in order to improve the quality of nursing care it is recommended that communication skills be established and taught as a separate course in nursing education.

Working alliance in communication skills training for oncology clinicians: A controlled trial

ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of communication skills training (CST) on working alliance and to identify specific communicational elements related to working alliance. MethodsPre- and post-training simulated patient interviews (6-month interval) of oncology physicians and nurses (N=56) who benefited from CST were compared to two simulated patient interviews with a 6-month interval of oncology physicians and nurses (N=57) who did not benefit from CST. The patient–clinician interaction was analyzed by means of the Roter Interaction Analysis System (RIAS). Alliance was measured by the Working Alliance Inventory – Short Revised Form. ResultsWhile working alliance did not improve with CST, generalized linear mixed effect models demonstrated that the quality of verbal communication was related to alliance. Positive talk and psychosocial counseling fostered alliance whereas negative talk, biomedical information and patient's questions diminished alliance. ConclusionPatient–clinician alliance is related to specific verbal communication behaviors. Practice implicationsWorking alliance is a key element of patient–physician communication which deserves further investigation as a new marker and efficacy criterion of CST outcome.

The Impact of Communication Skills Training in Oncology: a Linguistic Analysis

This study aimed to investigate the impact of a communication skills training (CST) in oncology on clinicians' linguistic strategies. A verbal communication analysis software (Logiciel d'Analyse de la Communication Verbale) was used to compare simulated patients interviews with oncology clinicians who participated in CST (N=57) (pre/post with a 6-month interval) with a control group of oncology clinicians who did not (N=56) (T1/T2 with a 6-month interval). A significant improvement of linguistic strategies related to biomedical, psychological and social issues was observed. Analysis of linguistic aspects of videotaped interviews might become in the future a part of individualised feedback in CST and utilised as a marker for an evaluation of training.

Patient-centredness from education to practice: The ‘lived’ impact of communication skills training

Background: Although communication skills training (CST) enhances patient-centred skills and attitudes, the literature indicates a problematic transfer of these from education into practice.Aim: We explored ‘lived’ experiences of medical students and doctors to gain a better understanding of the impact of CST on patient-centredness in the transition to real practice.Methods: From a phenomenological perspective, we conducted 15 interviews and 11 focus groups with 4–9 participants/group (n = 67) at two universities and carried out constant comparative analysis.Results: The gap between education and practice is the central phenomenon. Although CST raises students’ communication awareness and self-efficacy in an ‘ideal’ context, this paradoxically seems to jeopardize their ability to bridge the gulf. In addition, CST does not come to grips with students’ attitudes. However, CST appears to be successful in equipping students with long-lasting ‘handles’. Yet students need more support to mould the provided ‘ideal’ models into their own unique style of context-specific patient-centred behaviour. This implies: raising students’ awareness of own attitudes and communication styles, offering a more realistic training ground, integrating CST with clinical experience and translating the primary-care-rooted concept of patient-centredness into various specialization contexts.Conclusion: CST could raise its impact by supporting students’ recycling processes towards a personal style of context-sensitive patient-centredness.

Medical students trained in communication skills show a decline in patient-centred attitudes: An observational study comparing two cohorts during clinical clerkships

Objective Literature indicates a decline in patient-centredness in medical students, especially during clinical clerkships. We examined the impact of preclinical communication skills training (CST) on students’ development of patient-centred attitudes and attitudes toward CST during clerkships. Methods We prospectively compared two cohorts before and after clerkships: one cohort ( n = 48) had not received CST, whereas the other ( n = 37) had received a five-year CST. We assessed the impact using five validated questionnaires. Results Communication trained students slightly but significantly declined in patient-centred attitudes (3/4 scales) and attitudes toward CST during clerkships, whereas the scores of the untrained students remained stable (5/5 scales). Both cohorts did not differ in attitudes before clerkships. In the trained cohort, males mostly showed a sharper decline than females. In the total group ( n = 85), females demonstrated higher attitude scores toward CST, and in 1/4 scales measuring patient-centred attitudes. Conclusion This cohort study suggests that CST might make students more vulnerable to decline in attitude scores during clerkships. Practice implications These remarkable findings, contrary to what educators would expect to result from their efforts, challenge medical education to address the new questions that are raised about the validity of the questionnaires, the impact of CST and the learning processes involved in the development of patient-centredness.