Current standard geriatric curricula and exposure of students to the elderly may be insufficient to influence students' interest in geriatric medicine. We developed an innovative curriculum to address this gap. This study aimed to identify knowledge, skill, and attitude changes of first-year students in an accelerated baccalaureate-MD program toward geriatrics after participation in an early-exposure geriatrics curriculum (GC). The GC consisted of fifteen 3-hr interactive teaching sessions facilitated by various health professionals. This was a single group, pre- and post-intervention study using a knowledge test and attitude survey. To assess the effectiveness of this curriculum, students also completed an Objective Structured Clinical Exam (OSCE) on falls, cognitive and functional assessment, and delivering bad news. Twenty-seven baccalaureate-MD students (mean age = 18.8 years) participated in the GC intervention between January and April 2015. The post-GC showed significant improvement in knowledge (P = 0.013), skills, and attitude (P < 0.01) toward older adults. Students as a group overall met the standard of 85% of possible points in all three OSCE cases. This study shows that an early-exposure geriatric education intervention is associated with an increase in students' knowledge, skills, and attitudes in caring for older adults.
Objectives Explain the lack of training that residents have with regards to code status communication. Describe the approaches that residents utilize and the obstacles they face when conducting code status discussions. Original Research Background. While resident physicians may independently elicit a patient's code status preference starting on their first day of training, limited prior research has examined residents' code status discussion training and approaches. Research Objectives. 1.) Describe residents' code status communication training and readiness to lead a code status discussion. 2.) Assess residents' communication approaches when discussing code status. Methods. All residents in the internal medicine and medicine-pediatrics program at one academic medical center received an online, anonymous survey in March 2019 with two follow-up prompts and without incentives.
2. Recognize the benefits of role play for communication based learning. Background. While some nurses receive fundamental communications skills training, opportunities exist to strengthen palliative communication skills among nurses in cancer care. At our NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center, we sought to adopt the COMFORT TMSM Communication Curriculum to broaden oncology nurses' competencies to engage in difficult conversations in routine practice across all settings. Developed through research, the curriculum includes communication skills-building sessions and provides participants with a communication toolkit. Aim Statement. To improve nurses' patient centered communication across the cancer trajectory. Methods. Participants in the NCI-funded COMFORT TMSM Communication for Oncology Nurses professional training program partnered with our departments of Supportive Care Medicine and Nursing Professional Development. A COMFORT TMSM Team was established to develop and deliver a curriculum for our cancer center. The target audience included nurses and nursing/ medical assistants throughout all clinical environments. The program consists of seven 1.5-hour classes, including lecture and role-play to enhance skills. Each class dedicated time for debriefing and interactive discussions to address barriers and concerns related to integration of COMFORT TMSM techniques into nurses' busy practices. To foster engagement, the curriculum was offered as part of Nursing Grand Rounds, as an element of progression within the nursing Clinical Ladder, and by linking COMFORT TMSM with our foundational nursing theory (Duffy's Quality Caring Model). Results. To date, 74 individuals from various clinical areas have participated in the COMFORT TMSM Curriculum, including registered nurses, advance practice nurses, care coordinators, clinical educators, and medical assistants. Results from the C-COPE survey indicate attendees' comfort with palliative conversations increased following participation.
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