General practitioners as educators in adolescent health: a training evaluation

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Adolescent Health
• General Practice

Background:

• General practitioners (GPs) are crucial in adolescent primary care but often lack confidence and skills in adolescent health.
• This study addresses the need for improved adolescent health education by GPs in community and clinical settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate an innovative training intervention designed to enhance medical participants' knowledge and confidence as adolescent health educators.
• To assess the effectiveness of the training in a school setting.

Main Methods:

• A mixed-methods design was employed, including pre- and post-intervention surveys and focus group interviews.
• Participants included 15 general practitioners, 12 general practice registrars, and 18 medical students.
• The intervention involved an adolescent health education workshop followed by practical field experience in secondary schools.

Main Results:

• Significant increases in mean scores were observed for 'Confidence to Teach' (p < .001) and 'Confidence to Communicate with Adolescents' (p < .001).
• Mean knowledge scores also increased significantly (p < .001), indicating enhanced understanding of adolescent health issues.
• Participants valued the training in adolescent health topics, generic teaching skills (lesson planning, design), experiential strategies, and effective communication techniques.

Conclusions:

• An applied training intervention utilizing evidence-based, experiential strategies effectively enhances knowledge and confidence for adolescent health education.
• The training equips medical professionals with practical skills for community-based adolescent health education, with potential transferability to clinical practice.