Serious Illness Communication Training for Surgical Critical Care Fellows: A Pilot Implementation Study

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Surgical Critical Care
• Palliative Care Communication

Background:

• Effective communication is vital for surgical palliative care within surgical critical care (SCC).
• Limited educational strategies exist for SCC fellows, who often lead clinical decision-making and patient/family trust-building.
• This pilot study addresses this gap with a novel training program.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the implications of a new serious illness communication training for SCC fellows.
• To evaluate changes in fellows' self-perceived confidence in communication skills.

Main Methods:

• A 3-hour multimodal training session was implemented (1-hour didactic, 2-hour simulation).
• Pre- and post-course surveys were used to assess self-perceived confidence.
• Eleven SCC fellows participated and completed all assessments.

Main Results:

• Following training, 6 of 7 confidence domains improved, with statistically significant gains in discussing goals of care/code status and end-of-life care.
• At 6-month follow-up, fellows reported further confidence increases.
• 91% felt more comfortable conducting serious illness conversations post-training.

Conclusions:

• A 3-hour training course tailored for SCC fellows significantly enhanced immediate and long-term confidence in serious illness communication.
• The training improved fellows' ability to manage complex care scenarios and communicate effectively.