Document Type : Original Article
Author
Department of Paediatrics, Army College of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
Abstract
PURPOSE: Communication skills are essential for medical practice throughout the life of a doctor.
Traditional undergraduate medical teaching in pediatrics focuses on teaching students with theoretical
and practical knowledge of diseases, their diagnosis, and treatment modalities. This study was
done to use role play as a tool to teach basic communication skills to the final‑year undergraduate
students in pediatrics and to assess perceptions of students and faculty for using role play to teach
counseling and communication skills in pediatrics.
METHODS: It was an observational, questionnaire‑based study conducted in the Department of
Pediatrics on the final‑year medical undergraduates. Two modules for role play on common pediatric
topics were designed and role play was conducted. At the end of the session, student and faculty
feedback were taken by a prevalidated questionnaire with both close (using the 5‑point Likert scale)
and open‑ended questions. In pre‑ and post‑role play sessions, communication skills assessment
scoring was done. Statistical evaluation of the collected data was then carried out using SPSS 22.
RESULTS: A total of 98 final‑year students participated in this study. Role play was found to be
the most preferred tool (33%) for teaching communication skills to the students. Majority of the
students (88.78%) and faculty (91.67%) felt that role play helped in teaching communicating skills.
Comparison of pre‑ and post‑role play scores on communication skills showed statistically significant
improvement (P < 0.001).
CONCLUSION: Role play can be used as an effective tool to teach communication skills to
undergraduate medical students in pediatrics.
Keywords
Chepaitis AE, et al. Effect of communications training on medical
student performance. JAMA 2003;290:1157‑65.
2. Joekes K, Noble LM, Kubacki AM, Potts HW, Lloyd M. Does the
inclusion of ‘professional development’ teaching improve medical
students’ communication skills? BMC Med Educ 2011;11:41.
3. Rider EA, Hinrichs MM, Lown BA. A model for communication
skills assessment across the undergraduate curriculum. Med
Teach 2006;28:e127‑34.
4. Hausberg MC, Hergert A, Kröger C, Bullinger M, Rose M,
Andreas S, et al. Enhancing medical students’ communication
skills: Development and evaluation of an undergraduate training
program. BMC Med Educ 2012;12:16.
5. Chatterjee S, Choudhury N. Medical communication skills
training in the Indian setting: Need of the hour. Asian J Transfus
Sci 2011;5:8‑10.
6. Shukla AK, Yadav VS, Kastury N. Doctor‑patient communication:
an important but often ignored aspect in clinical medicine. JIACM
2010;11:208‑11.
7. Virshup BB, Oppenberg AA, Coleman MM. Strategic risk
management: Reducing malpractice claims through more effective
patient‑doctor communication. Am J Med Qual 1999;14:153‑9.
8. Kurtz S, Draper J, Silverman J. Calgary‑Cambridge guides
communication process skills. In: Teaching and Learning
Communication Skills in Medicine. 2nd ed. New York: CRC Press;
2004. p. 44‑8.
9. Joyce BL, Steenbergh T, Scher E. Use of the Kalamazoo essential
elements communication checklist (adapted) in an institutional
interpersonal and communication skills curriculum. J Grad Med
Educ 2010;2:165‑9.
10. Makoul G. Essential elements of communication in medical
encounters: The Kalamazoo consensus statement. Acad Med
2001;76:390‑3.
11. Likert R. A technique for the measurement of attitudes. Arch
Psychol 1932;140:1‑55.
12. Mogra I. Roleplay in teacher education: Is there still a place for
it? Teach Educ Adv Netw J 2012;4:4‑15.
13. Nikendei C, Kraus B, Schrauth M, Weyrich P, Zipfel S, Herzog W,
et al. Integration of role‑playing into technical skills training:
A randomized controlled trial. Med Teach 2007;29:956‑60.
14. Bosse HM, Nickel M, Huwendiek S, Jünger J, Schultz JH,
Nikendei C, et al. Peer role‑play and standardised patients in
communication training: A comparative study on the student
perspective on acceptability, realism, and perceived effect. BMC
Med Educ 2010;10:27.
15. ManzoorI, Mukhtar F, Hashmi NR. Medical students’ perspective
about role‑plays as a teaching strategy in community medicine.
J Coll Physicians Surg Pak 2012;22:222‑5.
16. Jackson VA, Back AL. Teaching communication skills using
role‑play: An experience‑based guide for educators. J Palliat Med
2011;14:775‑80.
17. Taveira‑Gomes I, Mota‑Cardoso R, Figueiredo‑Braga M.
Communication skills in medical students – An exploratory study
before and after clerkships. Porto Biomed J 2016;1:173‑80.
18. Stevenson K, Sander P. Medical students are from mars – Business
and psychology students are from Venus – University teachers
are from Pluto? Med Teach 2002;24:27‑31.
19. Nestel D, Tierney T. Role‑play for medical students learning about
communication: Guidelines for maximising benefits. BMC Med
Educ 2007;7:3.
20. Joyner B, Young L. Teaching medical students using role play:
Twelve tips for successful role plays. Med Teach 2006;28:225‑9.
21. Knowles MS, Holton EF, Swanson RA. The Adult Learner: The
Definitive Classic in Adult Education and Human Resource
Development. 6th ed. USA: Elsevier; 2005. p. 35‑72.
)