A Study of Differences in Compulsory Courses Offering Medicine Humanization and Medical Communication in Polish Medical Schools: Content Analysis of Secondary Data

Abstract

Medical humanity is an essential element of medical education, and the respective courses are introduced to the curricula of medical schools worldwide. However, significant differences in this type of medical education were identified in Italy, Spain, and the UK. In Poland, this issue was not yet analyzed. The classes offered on a compulsory and not elective basis secure the uniform skills of future physicians. Therefore, we were prompted to ask a question: do Polish medical students receive equal compulsory education in medical humanities? To answer that question, we performed a content analysis of mandatory classes’ frequency, types, and content on medical humanization and communication in Polish medical schools. The study used publicly available information provided on the home pages of the universities to perform content and comparative analyses. Of 22 identified universities, 15 had publicly listed teaching programs, and nine had freely available syllabi. The names and types of courses varied from school to school. The number of hours the courses offered throughout medical education ranged from 15 to 216. In some medical schools, the classes were scheduled during the early, pre-clinical part of the study, whereas in other schools they were offered each year. The content of the courses always covered the topics of physician–patient communication but rarely offered protocols, such as the Calgary Cambridge guide. We conclude that the medical humanities represented by medical humanization and communication courses are included in the publicly available compulsory curriculum of most Polish medical schools. However, to secure equal education of future Polish physicians, there is a need to unify the medical humanities program.

Perception of Medical Humanities among Polish Medical Students: Qualitative Analysis

“…The format issue of the MH courses (elective versus compulsory) was addressed in a recent study, which identified medical students' preference for elective classes [25], agreeing with our present findings. In addition, previously, we identified vast differences between Polish universities in the form of MH classes and the time investment that varied from as much as 216 h of training to as little as 15 h during the entire course of study [19].…”

“…However, Polish medical universities implement MH in a wide variety of ways. At the same time, no universal curriculum model for MH classes exists [19].…”

Humanization of medicine from the perspective of physicians in Poland

“…W Polsce realizacja przedmiotów odnoszących się do idei humanizmu na kierunkach lekarskich jest zróżnicowana. Liczba przedmiotów związanych z medycyną humanistycz ną na polskich uczelniach wahała się od 1 do 6, natomiast całkowity wymiar nauczania wahał się od 15 do 216 godzin w zakresie zajęć obowiązkowych [41]. Ponadto przeprowa dzona w 2020 roku identyfikacja umiejętności ważnych dla przyszłych lekarzy pod kątem wykonywaniu zawodu wyka zała, że respondenci czuli się dobrze przygotowani w zakre sie kompetencji teoretycznych do wykonywania przyszłego zawodu, natomiast swoje przygotowanie praktyczne ocenili jako znacznie niższe.…”

Delivering Bad News: Self-Assessment and Educational Preferences of Medical Students

“…There are 21 universities in Poland that offer undergraduate courses in Medicine. All of these educational institutions teach a 12-term (6-year) Medicine course that ends with an MSc in Medicine [ 15 ]. The subjects taught during the first six terms (three years) are mainly theoretical, while clinical subjects are taught from the fourth year until the sixth year of the course.…”