Exploring 'MoyaMoya': a multidisciplinary case study workshop on emotional conflicts in clinical practice

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Healthcare Professional Well-being
• Clinical Ethics

Background:

• Healthcare professionals experience significant emotional conflicts and moral distress in clinical practice.
• These challenges, termed "moyamoya" in Japanese, impact professional well-being and patient care.
• Existing support structures may not adequately address the emotional and ethical dimensions of clinical work.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe a multidisciplinary, multi-generational case conference model.
• To explore its effectiveness in addressing healthcare professionals' emotional conflicts and moral distress.
• To evaluate its potential for fostering reflective practice and interprofessional understanding.

Main Methods:

• Five hybrid case conferences were conducted, co-organized by Kyoto-Min-Iren and an independent study group.
• Anonymized clinical cases were presented, focusing on emotional conflicts and encouraging critical dialogue.
• Participants included physicians, nurses, social workers, administrative staff, and medical students.

Main Results:

• Conferences generated diverse discussions and insights, promoting reflection akin to Significant Event Analysis.
• The dialogue enhanced mutual understanding by making interprofessional perspectives visible.
• Opportunities arose to reconsider problem-solving approaches and incorporate patient life backgrounds, offering learning on social determinants of health.

Conclusions:

• Case conferences focused on emotional conflicts can foster reflective practice and interprofessional understanding.
• This approach facilitates learning beyond technical knowledge, particularly with socially vulnerable cases.
• Structural refinements are necessary to optimize discussion facilitation and participant engagement for enhanced practical value.