Rehabilitation medicine: follow-up study on teaching communication skills

A communication skills training course was given to 22 rehabilitation professionals and the results were previously reported. The level of communication skills was also evaluated in 18 months after the course in 15 of the 22 trainees using written and videotape tests. Although scores were lower than those on previous postcourse testing, they were significantly higher than on precourse testing. Communications skills can be taught using the Human Resources Development Model and appear to result in a lasting improvement in communication.