Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 12, 2025
07:31
A Computerized Functional Skills Assessment and Training Program Targeting Technology Based Everyday Functional Skills
Published on: February 13, 2020
7.0K
Sustained Impact: Long-Term Application of Diagnostic Uncertainty Communication Training
Danielle M McCarthy1, Jethel Hernandez2, Dimitrios Papanagnou3
1Department of Emergency Medicine Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine Chicago Illinois USA.
AEM Education and Training
|August 7, 2025
Summary
Emergency medicine residents trained in diagnostic uncertainty communication continue to use these skills years later. The most valued skill is reassuring patients that serious conditions have been ruled out.
Area of Science:
- Medical Education
- Emergency Medicine
- Communication Skills
Background:
- A significant portion of emergency department (ED) patients are discharged without a definitive diagnosis.
- Effective communication of diagnostic uncertainty is crucial for patient understanding and satisfaction.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the long-term application of diagnostic uncertainty communication skills by emergency medicine residents after a simulation-based mastery learning curriculum.
- To identify the most valued components of the Uncertainty Communication Checklist (UCC) for future training.
Main Methods:
- A survey was administered to 109 residents trained in 2019-2020, assessing current uncertainty encounters and skill utilization.
- Respondents rated the importance of 21 UCC items for future training on a 4-point Likert scale.
Main Results:
- 60% of respondents (65 residents) completed the survey.
- Over 90% encountered diagnostic uncertainty regularly, and 74% frequently applied learned skills.
- The most highly endorsed UCC item (90%) was "Clearly state that either 'life-threatening' or 'dangerous' conditions have not been found."
Conclusions:
- Emergency medicine residents retain and utilize diagnostic uncertainty communication skills effectively long after initial training.
- The core message of ruling out serious conditions is the most critical element for patient communication training.
Related Concept Videos
00:54Uncertainty: Confidence Intervals
4.7K
The confidence interval is the range of values around the mean that contains the true mean. It is expressed as a probability percentage. The interpretation of a 95% confidence interval, for instance, is that the statistician is 95% confident that the true mean falls within the interval. The upper and lower limits of this range are known as confidence limits. The confidence limits for the true mean are estimated from the sample's mean, the standard deviation, and the statistical factor...
4.7K
01:25Role of Communication in the Nursing Process I: Assessment and Diagnosis
4.5K
The nursing process uses scientific reasoning, problem-solving, and critical thinking to guide nurses in providing patients with appropriate care. This process is a systematic approach to recognize, avoid, and treat current or potential health issues while promoting the patient's well-being.
The nursing process considers the patient's emotional and physical well-being. The process can be repeated or stopped at any point if judged essential. Assessment is the first step in the nursing...
The nursing process considers the patient's emotional and physical well-being. The process can be repeated or stopped at any point if judged essential. Assessment is the first step in the nursing...
4.5K
01:21Barriers to Effective Communication II
3.8K
The barriers to effective communication also include cultural barriers, semantic barriers, gender barriers, and time constraints.
Cultural barriers:
Differences in values, beliefs, religion, knowledge, and tradition can significantly impact communication. Awareness of nonverbal cues is critical, especially when conversing with a patient from a different culture. What appears appropriate in one culture may be inappropriate in another.
Semantic barriers:
As a result of their tendency to use...
Cultural barriers:
Differences in values, beliefs, religion, knowledge, and tradition can significantly impact communication. Awareness of nonverbal cues is critical, especially when conversing with a patient from a different culture. What appears appropriate in one culture may be inappropriate in another.
Semantic barriers:
As a result of their tendency to use...
3.8K
00:59Uncertainty: Overview
978
In analytical chemistry, we often perform repetitive measurements to detect and minimize inaccuracies caused by both determinate and indeterminate errors. Despite the cares we take, the presence of random errors means that repeated measurements almost never have exactly the same magnitude. The collective difference between these measurements - observed values - and the estimated or expected value is called uncertainty. Uncertainty is conventionally written after the estimated or expected value.
978
01:30Therapeutic Communication
5.4K
Communication is a lifelong learning process. Through therapeutic communication, nurses can collect relevant assessment data, provide education and counseling, and interact during nursing interventions. Sending and receiving messages occur through verbal and nonverbal communication techniques and can happen separately or simultaneously.
Verbal communication depends on language or a prescribed way of using words so that people can share information effectively. The critical aspects of verbal...
Verbal communication depends on language or a prescribed way of using words so that people can share information effectively. The critical aspects of verbal...
5.4K
01:10Propagation of Uncertainty from Systematic Error
886
The atomic mass of an element varies due to the relative ratio of its isotopes. A sample's relative proportion of oxygen isotopes influences its average atomic mass. For instance, if we were to measure the atomic mass of oxygen from a sample, the mass would be a weighted average of the isotopic masses of oxygen in that sample. Since a single sample is not likely to perfectly reflect the true atomic mass of oxygen for all the molecules of oxygen on Earth, the mass we obtain from this...
886