Teaching Preclinical Medical Students Lifestyle Counseling Skills for Patients’ Health Behavior Change
Introduction Physicians face barriers to counseling patients regarding lifestyle, specifically, low perceived importance of and confidence in counseling, leading to underuse. There is a dearth in the literature evaluating educational interventions for counseling skills among preclinical medical stud...
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Association of American Medical Colleges
2024-12-01
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| Series: | MedEdPORTAL |
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| Online Access: | http://www.mededportal.org/doi/10.15766/mep_2374-8265.11478 |
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| author | Priya Small Sherry Adkins Amanda Bell |
| author_facet | Priya Small Sherry Adkins Amanda Bell |
| author_sort | Priya Small |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Introduction Physicians face barriers to counseling patients regarding lifestyle, specifically, low perceived importance of and confidence in counseling, leading to underuse. There is a dearth in the literature evaluating educational interventions for counseling skills among preclinical medical students. Closing this gap is crucial to taking advantage of critical opportunities early in training. Methods We taught a session on evidence-based counseling for lifestyle changes to 124 preclinical medical students using case scenarios and role-plays. Our evaluation included (1) measures of perceived importance of and confidence in counseling and (2) measures of perceived gains related to learning objectives. We also undertook qualitative analysis of the session evaluation and thematic analysis of written assignments. Results There were statistically significant increases in perceived importance of and confidence in lifestyle counseling. Postintervention student responses demonstrated the highest gain for listing and addressing obstacles to physician counseling, followed by applying physician counseling interventions. Students applied models correctly; however, our thematic analysis of written assignments demonstrated room for continued improvement in application of motivational interviewing techniques. Discussion It is significant that our session impacted students’ attitudes on the importance of lifestyle counseling. Based on the session evaluation, we are refining assignment instructions for clarity, providing more time for each role-play, and starting with a faculty role-play demonstration. Aggregate data over time will be more robust than our single cohort. Our evaluation was limited to self-reported attitudes and role-play transcript review, but future interventions could use thematic analysis of recorded role-plays or direct observation of patient simulations. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-d84d79f63ee64d909323538a772bba03 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2374-8265 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | Association of American Medical Colleges |
| record_format | Article |
| series | MedEdPORTAL |
| spelling | doaj-art-d84d79f63ee64d909323538a772bba032024-12-30T05:00:12ZengAssociation of American Medical CollegesMedEdPORTAL2374-82652024-12-012010.15766/mep_2374-8265.11478Teaching Preclinical Medical Students Lifestyle Counseling Skills for Patients’ Health Behavior ChangePriya Small0Sherry Adkins1Amanda Bell2Assistant Professor and Program Manager, Department of Medical Education, Wright State University Boonshoft School of MedicineClinical Assistant Professor, Department of Family Medicine, and Associate Program Director, Rural Family Medicine, Wright State University Boonshoft School of MedicineAssociate Professor, Department of Medical Education, and Assistant Dean, Clinical Skills Education, Wright State University Boonshoft School of MedicineIntroduction Physicians face barriers to counseling patients regarding lifestyle, specifically, low perceived importance of and confidence in counseling, leading to underuse. There is a dearth in the literature evaluating educational interventions for counseling skills among preclinical medical students. Closing this gap is crucial to taking advantage of critical opportunities early in training. Methods We taught a session on evidence-based counseling for lifestyle changes to 124 preclinical medical students using case scenarios and role-plays. Our evaluation included (1) measures of perceived importance of and confidence in counseling and (2) measures of perceived gains related to learning objectives. We also undertook qualitative analysis of the session evaluation and thematic analysis of written assignments. Results There were statistically significant increases in perceived importance of and confidence in lifestyle counseling. Postintervention student responses demonstrated the highest gain for listing and addressing obstacles to physician counseling, followed by applying physician counseling interventions. Students applied models correctly; however, our thematic analysis of written assignments demonstrated room for continued improvement in application of motivational interviewing techniques. Discussion It is significant that our session impacted students’ attitudes on the importance of lifestyle counseling. Based on the session evaluation, we are refining assignment instructions for clarity, providing more time for each role-play, and starting with a faculty role-play demonstration. Aggregate data over time will be more robust than our single cohort. Our evaluation was limited to self-reported attitudes and role-play transcript review, but future interventions could use thematic analysis of recorded role-plays or direct observation of patient simulations.http://www.mededportal.org/doi/10.15766/mep_2374-8265.11478Attitudes5AsFRAMESLifestyle CounselingMotivational InterviewingPreclinical |
| spellingShingle | Priya Small Sherry Adkins Amanda Bell Teaching Preclinical Medical Students Lifestyle Counseling Skills for Patients’ Health Behavior Change MedEdPORTAL Attitudes 5As FRAMES Lifestyle Counseling Motivational Interviewing Preclinical |
| title | Teaching Preclinical Medical Students Lifestyle Counseling Skills for Patients’ Health Behavior Change |
| title_full | Teaching Preclinical Medical Students Lifestyle Counseling Skills for Patients’ Health Behavior Change |
| title_fullStr | Teaching Preclinical Medical Students Lifestyle Counseling Skills for Patients’ Health Behavior Change |
| title_full_unstemmed | Teaching Preclinical Medical Students Lifestyle Counseling Skills for Patients’ Health Behavior Change |
| title_short | Teaching Preclinical Medical Students Lifestyle Counseling Skills for Patients’ Health Behavior Change |
| title_sort | teaching preclinical medical students lifestyle counseling skills for patients health behavior change |
| topic | Attitudes 5As FRAMES Lifestyle Counseling Motivational Interviewing Preclinical |
| url | http://www.mededportal.org/doi/10.15766/mep_2374-8265.11478 |
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