A systematic and comprehensive approach to teaching and evaluating interpersonal skills

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Healthcare Communication
• Patient-Centered Care

Background:

• Current interpersonal skills training often omits behaviors linked to patient dissatisfaction and noncompliance.
• Effective patient-provider communication is crucial for treatment adherence and health outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate a comprehensive interpersonal skills training program for healthcare students.
• To assess the impact of the training on students' interpersonal skills.

Main Methods:

• A pretest-posttest evaluation design was employed.
• Two student groups were compared: one receiving the interpersonal skills instruction and a control group.
• Interpersonal skills were assessed using standardized measures before and after the intervention.

Main Results:

• Students who underwent the interpersonal skills training demonstrated significant improvement from pretest to posttest.
• The magnitude of improvement in the trained group was statistically greater than in the untrained control group.

Conclusions:

• A comprehensive interpersonal skills training program can effectively enhance students' abilities in patient communication.
• This training approach offers a promising method for improving healthcare provider-student interpersonal competencies.
• Addressing a wider range of interpersonal behaviors in training is essential for better patient outcomes.