Teaching Medical Students About "The Conversation": An Interactive Value-Based Advance Care Planning Session

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Bioethics
• Palliative Care

Background:

• Advance care planning (ACP) is crucial for aligning medical treatment with patient values.
• Effective medical education must equip future physicians to initiate value-based ACP conversations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and assess an educational session on value-based advance care planning for medical students.
• To encourage medical students to undertake personal ACP actions.

Main Methods:

• A 75-minute educational session was delivered to third-year medical students.
• The session utilized personal reflection and The Conversation Starter Kit for end-of-life discussions.
• Student evaluations were conducted immediately post-session and one month later via electronic surveys.

Main Results:

• Over 90% of students found the session valuable, particularly for personal ACP reflection and using The Conversation Starter Kit.
• Post-session, 73% planned to discuss ACP, 91% considered future care preferences, and 39% designated a medical decision-maker.
• No significant increase in completed advance directives or provider discussions was observed one month later.

Conclusions:

• The value-based ACP educational session effectively engaged students in professional and personal ACP learning.
• The session shows potential for improving students' ability to initiate ACP conversations for themselves and future patients.