ArticleCureus2025
Virtual Patients for Communication Skills Training: A Mixed Methods Evaluation.
Article in Cureus, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
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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
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Virtual patients and learning communication skills at "double speed": a qualitative study using the TPACK framework.Advances in simulation (London, England) · 2026Article
- Use of Digital Technology for Developing Communication Skills in Undergraduate and Postgraduate Medical Education: Scoping Review.JMIR medical education · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundEffective communication is critical in clinical practice, and virtual patients offer a promising, safe alternative for enhancing communication training in medical education.
objectiveTo evaluate the effectiveness of virtual patient-based simulation in enhancing key communication skills-such as active listening, empathy, and clarity of explanations-and to explore learner experience, including engagement, satisfaction, usability, and perceived educational value, using a mixed methods approach. MATERIALS AND
methodsThis one-year mixed-methods study (Aug 2022-Jul 2023) assessed the effectiveness and learner experience of virtual patient-based communication training among undergraduate and postgraduate medical trainees across six institutions in Pakistan. A total of 258 undergraduate and postgraduate medical trainees participated in virtual simulations using the Body Interact™ platform (Take The Wind, SA, Coimbra, Portugal). Participants were enrolled through convenience sampling and represented a mix of clinical-year undergraduates and early- to mid-stage postgraduate trainees, with no prior formal training in virtual patient-based communication tools. Quantitative data were collected through pre- and post-training questionnaires assessing communication skills, confidence, and satisfaction, analyzed using paired t-tests. Qualitative data were obtained via semi-structured interviews with a subset of participants (n ≈ 25) and analyzed using thematic analysis. Triangulation integrated both data sets for comprehensive interpretation.
resultsParticipants showed significant improvement in communication domains, including active listening (pre: 3.21±0.81; post: 4.11±0.66;
conclusionVirtual patients are an effective and engaging tool for improving healthcare communication skills in clinical trainees.
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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.