PedsTalk: A Pilot Communication Skills Education Course for Pediatric Residents

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Pediatric Residency Training
• Communication Skills Development

Background:

• Effective communication is vital in pediatric practice, yet formal training is often lacking in residency programs.
• Pediatric residents frequently report low confidence in their communication abilities, particularly for serious illness discussions.
• There is a need for structured educational interventions to bolster these critical skills.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of a simulation-based communication skills course on pediatric residents' confidence.
• To assess improvements in skills necessary for serious illness conversations with patients and families.
• To compare the confidence levels of course participants with a control group of nonparticipants.

Main Methods:

• Development of the PedsTalk course, utilizing the VitalTalk framework and multidisciplinary faculty.
• Simulation sessions with actors, providing real-time coaching from trained faculty and peers.
• Self-rated confidence assessments using a 5-point Likert scale at baseline, immediately post-course, and 4 months later; analysis included Friedman and Wilcoxon rank tests, with thematic analysis of free-text responses.

Main Results:

• Participants showed sustained or significantly improved confidence in key communication skills, including difficult conversations, recognizing emotion, using silence, headline statements, eliciting values, and asking permission.
• The control group demonstrated significant improvements in confidence for only headline statements and eliciting values.
• Twenty-seven residents participated, with 11 completing all assessments; 11 nonparticipants served as controls.

Conclusions:

• The PedsTalk course represents a novel and effective method for enhancing communication skills education in pediatric residency.
• Participation led to significant improvements in residents' confidence across multiple communication domains, notably in handling difficult conversations.
• While clinical experience contributes to skill development, PedsTalk provides a structured enhancement to pediatric trainees' communication competencies.