Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37275354›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in medicine2023

How to communicate with patients in written asynchronous online conversations: an intervention study with undergraduate medical students in a cross-over design.

Teresa Festl-Wietek, Rebecca Erschens, Jan Griewatz, Stephan Zipfel, Anne Herrmann-Werner

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in medicine, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact, top 89% of its field
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed, 0 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Teresa Festl-WietekTIME-Tübingen Institute for Medical Education, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany.
Rebecca ErschensDepartment of Internal Medicine VI, Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany.
Jan GriewatzTIME-Tübingen Institute for Medical Education, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany.
Stephan ZipfelDepartment of Internal Medicine VI, Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany.
Anne Herrmann-WernerTIME-Tübingen Institute for Medical Education, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany.
University of Tübingen · DE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Introduction: The patient-physician encounter is the core element in the treatment of patients and the diagnosis of disease. In these times of digitalization, patient-physician communication is increasingly taking place online: patients embrace new possibilities offered digitally, and physicians are encouraged to adapt accordingly. Since a huge part of online communication is written, this study aims to investigate how medical students communicate with patients online by focusing on their written competencies and whether an intervention might improve their competencies. Methods: This study was performed in an explanatory cross-sectional manner with a cross-over design. Second-year medical students participated. An intervention was developed on how to formulate an appropriate written response to a patient's request and integrated a longitudinal communication class. The intervention consists of education on general set-up (e.g., greetings), syntax, spelling, content and kind of communication (e.g., appreciative attitude). After meeting a patient in a simulated role play medical students received the patient's request via a digital platform. The control group had the same simulated role play and the same task but they received the intervention on communication afterwards. Intervention and control group were statistically compared based on a checklist. Results: Twenty-nine medical students took part in the study. The results showed that the medical students had basic competencies in dealing with written communication independent if they received the intervention (CG: M = 3.86 ± 1.23 vs. IG: M = 4.07 ± 1.03; Discussion: Intervention on basic competencies such as simple language and clear presentation might not be needed as an integral part in medical education. However, medical students should learn how to present empathic and authentic behavior in written online communication.

Indexed as

digital communicationmedical studentsonline communicationpatient-physician communicationwritten communication

Identifiers

PMID37275354
PMCPMC10232748
OpenAlexW4377103396

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

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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.