Patients' views and feelings on the community-based teaching of undergraduate medical students: a qualitative study

Abstract

Patients enjoy their involvement in community-based teaching and perceive themselves as making a valuable contribution. The findings of the research will be reassuring for doctors who presently are involved and those who plan to be involved in the future. Doctors need to be aware of the possible shifts in the doctor-patient relationship when actively seeking patients' help in the teaching.

Perceptions of service user and carer involvement in healthcare education and impact on students’ knowledge and practice: A literature review

“…The majority of the papers reviewed related to the education of doctors (14) or nurses (19) with the professions allied to medicine being under represented. As identified in the review published by Repper & Breeze (2007), many of the interventions (13 papers in total) related to the field of mental health across the professions of nursing (10) and medicine (3).…”

“…Barriers to involvement noted in one study (14) were embarrassment and anxiety about students accessing medical records. More guidance and time to tell their stories would have been welcomed by some (31).…”

“…Users became involved for mainly altruistic reasons, wanting to enhance the practice of future doctors (13), offer real life experience (23), improve (19) or put something back (28) into the health service or community (14). Barriers to involvement noted in one study (14) were embarrassment and anxiety about students accessing medical records.…”

Commentary on experiential learning: changing student attitudes towards learning disability: how can we reduce exclusion further?

“…More specifically, people with learning disabilities gain considerable confidence and self-esteem, as well as feeling that they enhance their life skills and communicative competence from these activities (Coleman and Murray, 2002;Harding, 2009;Harding et al, 2012;Hooper & Bowler, 1991). Anecdotally, the impact of training students has been great for the service users who visit City University London over the last eight years, with substantial increases in communication abilities being observed.…”

Medical students as family-health advocates: Arabian Gulf University experience

“…However, it is important to realise the impact this form of teaching can have upon the patient (Fins et al 2003). Although the possibility arises that patients may not feel 'safe' in a teaching consultation, it is possible that they could learn much more about their condition, and adopt positive responses to their illness if they were included in the process (Cooke et al 1996;Williamson & Wilkie 1997;Coleman & Murray 2002;Benson et al 2005).…”