SynthesisHuman resources for health2021
Training in communication skills for self-efficacy of health professionals: a systematic review.
Synthesis in Human resources for health, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 94 papers, 7 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
94 citing papers in PubMed, 7 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 185 citations in OpenAlex.
- Communication and medical errors: a bibliometric analysis of research trends and knowledge structures.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Pooled it
- Training in communication skills for healthcare providers in chronic care: a systematic review.BMC medical education · 2025Pooled it
- Effectiveness of non-technical skills training in intensive care units: a systematic review.BMC medical education · 2025Pooled it
- Postpartum Women's Experiences of Postnatal Care in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Qualitative Evidence Synthesis.Birth (Berkeley, Calif.) · 2025Pooled it
- Self-efficacy in the context of nursing education and transition to practice as a registered practitioner: A systematic review.Nursing open · 2023Pooled it
- Impact of teaching, learning, and assessment of medical law on cognitive, affective and psychomotor skills of medical students: a systematic review.BMC medical education · 2023Pooled it
- Termination of pregnancy for fetal anomaly: a systematic review of the healthcare experiences and needs of parents.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2022Pooled it
- Impact of structured communication skills training program on self-efficacy and communication skills among primary health care workers in Southwest Iran.BMC health services research · 2025Trial
- Premarital intervention based on attachment and differentiation improves communication and conflict management in Iranian couples.Scientific reports · 2025Trial
- Equity Using Interventions for Pain and Depression (EQUIPD): A pilot randomized trial.The journal of pain · 2025Trial
- Mapping medication adherence interventions across Europe: Expert perspectives from 35 countries.Public health in practice (Oxford, England) · 2026Article
- Language-related self-efficacy of pharmacy staff in providing medication counselling to older adults in a linguistically diverse setting.Exploratory research in clinical and social pharmacy · 2026Article
- AI-Simulated Patients for Training Shared Decision-Making: Feasibility Study in Medical Education.JMIR medical education · 2026Article
- Exploring inequities in access to diabetes technologies among children and young people with type 1 diabetes: Perspectives of parents and young people from ethnic minority groups and low socio-economic areas.Diabetic medicine : a journal of the British Diabetic Association · 2026Article
- Why do occupational hygienists and physicians fail to communicate and collaborate when faced with chemicals in the workplace? A qualitative study from the Netherlands.Journal of occupational medicine and toxicology (London, England) · 2026Article
- A clinically contextualized, hands-on biostatistics workshop for rheumatology fellows-in-training: a quasi-experimental pre-post educational intervention study.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- The psychological impact of using 3D printing and imaging technology for patient education: a scoping review.3D printing in medicine · 2026Review
- Teaching communication competencies across the undergraduate medical curriculum: a qualitative exploratory case study.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- Effect of implementing the TAGEET communication model on communication competency among pediatric oncology nurses: a quasi-experimental study.BMC nursing · 2026Article
- Soft skills during residency in Spain: an analysis of the specialized training programmes.BMC medical education · 2026Observational
34 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundCommunication skills are essential for health professionals to establish a positive relationship with their patients, improving their health and quality of life. In this perspective, communication skills training can be effective strategies to improve the care provided by professionals in patient care and the quality of health services.
objectiveTo identify the best available evidence on training programs in communication skills to promote changes in attitude and behavior or self-efficacy of health professionals.
methodsSystematic searches were performed in eight databases, evaluating Randomized Controlled Trials and quasi-experimental studies with a control group, focusing on training communication skills for health professionals, who assessed self-efficacy or behaviors related to these skills. The phases of study selection and data extraction were carried out by two independent researchers, and the conflicts were resolved by a third. The risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane method.
resultsEight studies were included in the review. Most programs lasted between 4½ h and 2 days, involved information about communication skills and the content was applied to the health professionals' context. Several teaching strategies were used, such as lectures, videos and dramatizations and the evaluation was carried out using different instruments. Improvements in the performance and in the self-efficacy of communication skills were observed in the trained groups. The RCT had a low risk of bias and the quasi-experimental studies had a moderate risk.
conclusionTraining in communication skills can improve the performance and self-efficacy of health professionals. Programs that approach the conceptual issues and promote the space for experiential learning could be effective in communication skills training for professionals. PROSPERO: CRD42019129384.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.