Using Bedside Rounds to Teach Communication Skills in the Internal Medicine Clerkship.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Clinical Communication Skills
• Internal Medicine Training

Background:

• Physician communication skills significantly impact patient outcomes.
• Explicit communication skills training is often lacking during medical school clinical years.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop, implement, and evaluate a communication skills curriculum.
• To enhance physician communication skills during the third-year Internal Medicine Clerkship.

Main Methods:

• Four two-hour structured bedside rounds were conducted.
• Internal Medicine faculty facilitated training in common challenging clinical situations.
• An end-of-clerkship survey evaluated educational effectiveness.

Main Results:

• 160 third-year students and 15 faculty participated.
• 47% of students completed the post-clerkship survey.
• Nearly all surveyed students reported improved communication skills and confidence in handling difficult situations.

Conclusions:

• The communication skills curriculum was successfully implemented.
• The curriculum effectively reinforced core communication skills.
• It provided valuable practice for challenging patient interactions encountered in Internal Medicine.