Evolving Perceptions of Feedback in Medical Communication Training

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Healthcare Simulation
• Clinical Skills Training

Background:

• International medical students require effective feedback during training.
• Simulated patient consultations (SPCs) are crucial for developing clinical skills.
• Understanding evolving feedback preferences is key to optimizing medical education.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how first-year international medical students' perceptions of feedback evolve over time.
• To identify shifts in the perceived value of different feedback sources during simulated patient consultations.
• To propose a preliminary framework for feedback preferences in medical training.

Main Methods:

• Exploratory study design over an 8-month period.
• 10 first-year international medical students participated in 4 simulated patient consultations (SPCs).
• Structured surveys with Likert-scale ratings and open-ended questions assessed feedback value (simulated patient, observer, video-annotated peer, group discussion).

Main Results:

• Initially, simulated patient feedback was most valued for direct relevance.
• Over time, appreciation for observer, video-annotated peer feedback, and group discussions increased.
• By the final SPC, group discussions were often considered most valuable for collaborative reflection.

Conclusions:

• Learners' feedback needs may shift from immediate, patient-centered input to reflective, collaborative forms with experience.
• Tailoring feedback strategies to students' developmental stages is potentially important.
• Findings are preliminary, hypothesis-generating, and require further validation in larger studies.