Missed opportunities to train medical students in generalist palliative care during core clerkships

To improve the quality of care for dying patients, experts have called for all clinicians to be able to provide a generalist level of palliative care. Core clinical clerkships provide an opportunity to incorporate palliative care training to address the lack of required palliative care rotations at most U.S. medical schools.

The objective of this study was to identify and quantify missed opportunities to train third-year medical students in generalist palliative care during required core clerkships.

This study was a cross-sectional survey of third-year students at a leading U.S. medical school without a required palliative care rotation.

Students completed a survey during the last 4 months of the 2012-2013 academic year quantifying and evaluating their experiences caring for dying patients. Attitudes were assessed using a scale from a national survey of students, residents, and faculty.

Eighty-eight students responded (response rate [RR]=56%). More than one-quarter (26%) never participated in caring for a patient who died. More than one-half (55%) never delivered significant bad news and 38% never worked with a specialist in palliative medicine. Eighty-four percent of students who cared for a patient who died and 60% of students who delivered significant bad news had one or more of those experiences that were not debriefed.

At an institution without a required palliative care rotation, third-year medical students rarely or never care for patients who die during core clerkships, and when they do, their teams do not debrief or reflect on these experiences. Clinical faculty, including palliative care consultants, can address missed opportunities for palliative care training during core clerkships by augmenting and routinely debriefing students' experiences giving bad news and caring for dying patients.