Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38013712›Full record

ArticleGlobal surgical education : journal of the Association for Surgical Education2022

Implementation of a skills-based virtual communication curriculum for medical students interested in surgery.

Anna B Newcomb, Rachel D Appelbaum, Muneera Kapadia, Ryan Dumas, Jonathan Dort, Eleanor Carey, Mannet Dhaliwal, Shira Rothberg, Chang Liu, Denise Mohess

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Global surgical education : journal of the Association for Surgical Education, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. 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

10 authors.

Anna B NewcombDivision of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery, Inova Fairfax Medical Campus, 3300 Gallows Rd, Falls Church, VA 22042 USA.ORCID 0000-0003-2869-0958
Rachel D AppelbaumDivision of Acute Care Surgery, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN USA.
Muneera KapadiaDivision of Gastrointestinal Surgery, UNC School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, NC USA.
Ryan DumasDivision of General and Acute Care Surgery, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX USA.
Jonathan DortDepartment of Surgery, Inova Fairfax Medical Campus, Falls Church, VA USA.
Eleanor CareyDepartment of Global, Community Health at George Mason University, Fairfax, VA USA.
Mannet DhaliwalUniversity of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA USA.
Shira RothbergDepartment of Surgery, Inova Fairfax Medical Campus, Falls Church, VA USA.
Chang LiuDepartment of Surgery, Inova Fairfax Medical Campus, Falls Church, VA USA.
Denise MohessCo-Chief Geriatrics Bridgeport Hospital/Milford Campus, Yale New Haven Health System, Milford, CT USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Communication skills are essential to providing patient-centered care. The need for standardized communication skills training is at the forefront of medical school and residency education. We aimed to design and implement a curriculum teaching virtual communications skills to medical students. The purpose of this report is to describe our experience and to offer guidance for training programs developing similar curricula in the future. Methods: The curriculum was presented in weekly modules over 5 weeks using Zoom technology. We focused on proven strategies for interacting with patients and other providers, adapted to a virtual platform. Skill levels during role-play were assessed by the Simulated Participants and students observing the simulation using the 14-item, physician specific Communication Assessment Tool (CAT). The primary outcome of the CAT is the percentage of "excellent" for each item ranked both years. Participants provided feedback on what worked well or how the module could be improved in open-ended responses. Results: Twenty-eight and 25 students registered for the course in Year 1 and Year 2, respectively. Students' post-session confidence in their ability to perform target skills was statistically higher than their pre-session scores in most sessions. Modules with the lowest pre-session confidence for both years were "Disclosing a Medical Error" and "Responding to Patient Bias." The mean percentage of students receiving "excellent" scores on individual CAT items ranged from 5 to 73% over the course of both years. Verbal and written feedback in Year 1 provided direction for the curriculum developers to improve the course in Year 2. Conclusions: Developing and implementing a new education curriculum is a complex process. We describe an intensive curriculum for medical students as we strive to allow students extra "clinical" time during COVID-related restriction. We believe continued focus on patient and family communication skills will enhance patient care. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s44186-022-00054-9.

Indexed as

Curriculum implementationInterpersonal and communication skillsMedical educationSimulationVirtual platform

Identifiers

PMID38013712
PMCPMC9548309

What OpenQuestion holds

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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.