Search

Background: Clinicians' accuracy in perceiving nonverbal cues has potentially important consequences, but has received insufficient research., Objective: To examine the relation of medical students' nonverbal sensitivity to their gender and personal traits, as well as to their communication and impressions made during a standardized patient (SP) visit., Design: Psychometric testing, questionnaire, and observation., Setting: One US medical school., Participants: Two-hundred seventy-five third-year medical students., Measurements: Nonverbal sensitivity and attitudes were measured using standard instruments. Communication during the SP visit was measured using trained coders and analogue patients who viewed the videotapes and rated the favorability of their impressions of the student., Results: Nonverbal sensitivity was higher in female than male students (P < 0.001) and was positively correlated with self-reported patient-centered attitudes (P < 0.01) and ability to name one's own emotions (P < 0.05). It was also associated with less distressed (P < 0.05), more dominant (P < 0.001), and more engaged (P < 0.01) behavior by the SP, and with more liking of the medical student (P < 0.05) and higher ratings of compassion (P < 0.05) by the analogue patients. Correlations between nonverbal sensitivity and other variables were generally stronger and different for male than female students, but nonverbal sensitivity predicted analogue patients' impressions similarly for male and female students., Conclusion: Medical students' nonverbal sensitivity was related to clinically relevant attitudes and behavioral style in a clinical simulation.

Objective: To examine the consequences of expressions of uncertainty (EOUs) in medical student interactions, with a particular focus on the gender of the expressor., Methods: EOUs were identified in 147 videotaped interactions between third-year medical students and standardized patients enacting four medical scenarios. The encounters were also analyzed using the Roter Interaction Analysis System (RIAS). A subset of these interactions was shown to 244 analogue patients who rated satisfaction, liking, and perceived competence and confidence., Results: Female medical students used more EOUs but not when adjusted for total number of statements. The EOU rate varied across scenarios. A higher EOU rate was perceived as more affectively negative by both RIAS trained coders and analogue patients. EOU rate was inversely related to analogue patient satisfaction and liking and this relationship was stronger for males than females. Female student use of EOUs was more strongly associated with ratings of anxiety than was male EOU use., Conclusion: There was an overall negative perception of medical students who expressed uncertainty; however, the strength of the associations varied due to medical student gender., Practice Implications: The implications for medical education are discussed.

Objective: To measure rapport between medical students and standardized patients using observer ratings; to relate these ratings to students' emotional awareness and to behavior within the medical interaction; and to assess the relative validity of using excerpts of different lengths for the measurement of rapport., Methods: Third-year medical students (N=141) were videotaped during a 15-min interaction with a standardized patient, and rapport as well as other communication variables were measured using trained coders. Rapport was measured with good interrater reliability by trained coders who viewed three 1-min excerpts. Emotional awareness was measured by a test of recognizing facial expressions of emotion, self-ratings of emotional self-awareness, and peer ratings of interpersonal sensitivity. Finally, participants who viewed the videotapes while imagining themselves to be the patient (analogue patients) provided impressions of the students, including satisfaction., Results: Rapport based on all three minutes was positively correlated with accuracy in decoding facial expressions of emotion, self-reported attention to one's own emotions, peer ratings of sensitivity, communication behaviors of the medical student and standardized patient, and analogue patients' positive impressions and satisfaction. Rapport based on just the first minute of the interaction was significantly related to many of these variables., Conclusion: Rating short excerpts of behavior is a valid and efficient methodology for capturing the concept of rapport., Practice Implications: Clinicians, researchers, and educators should focus on rapport building, even very early in the medical visit.

Objective: Test the efficacy of educational interventions to reduce literacy barriers and enhance health outcomes among patients with inflammatory arthritis., Methods: The intervention consisted of plain language information materials and/or two individualized sessions with an arthritis educator. Randomization was stratified by education level. Principal outcomes included adherence to treatments, self-efficacy, satisfaction with care, and appointment keeping. Secondary outcomes included health status and mental health. Data were collected at baseline, six, and twelve months post., Results: Of the 127 patients, half had education beyond high school and three quarters had disease duration greater than five years. There were no differences in the primary outcome measures between the groups. In mixed models controlling for baseline score and demographic factors, the intervention group showed improvement in mental health score at six and twelve months (3.0 and 3.7 points, respectively), while the control group showed diminished scores (-4.5 and -2.6 points, respectively) (p=0.03 and 0.01)., Conclusion: While the intervention appears to have had no effect on primary outcomes, further studies with continued attention to literacy are warranted. Study site and disease duration must be considered as participants in this study had higher than average health literacy and had established diagnoses for years prior to this study., Practice Implications: The study offers insight into an application of many of the protocols currently recommended to ameliorate effects of limited literacy.

Objective: Randomized controlled trials in patient education often have difficulty enrolling vulnerable populations-specifically, older, poorer, and less educated individuals. We undertook a randomized controlled trial (RCT) of an educational intervention for arthritis management, which included strategies to remove literacy-related barriers to participation. This paper reports on the multi-stage recruitment process and assesses whether refusal to participate was related to education, age, gender, working status, or insurance status., Methods: The recruitment protocol was designed to eliminate literacy-related barriers to participation. Patients were never asked to read or fill out forms. Interactions were oral, using everyday terms and short, clear sentences. Patients who declined during a screening call were considered Stage 1 Refusers. Patients who initially expressed interest but neither completed a baseline questionnaire nor provided consent were considered Stage 2 Refusers. Patients who consented were considered Enrollees. Age, gender, and insurance status were compared between Stage 1 Refusers and Enrollees. A second analysis compared these variables, plus educational attainment and working status, between Stage 2 Refusers, and Enrollees., Results: Of 408 eligible patients, there were 193 (47.3%) Stage 1 Refusers, 81 (19.9%) Stage 2 Refusers and 134 (32.8%) Enrollees. A higher proportion of Stage 1 Refusers than Enrollees were > or = 65 years old (58% vs. 37%, p = .0003). Multivariate analysis, adjusting for gender and insurance status, confirmed the effect of older age on refusal (OR = 2.3 (1.4, 3.6)). There were no significant differences between Stage 2 Refusers and Enrollees., Conclusion: We found no evidence of refusal to participate due to educational attainment, working status, insurance status, or gender. Older patients were more likely to refuse participation at the first stage of recruitment., Practice Implications: Researchers should continue efforts to increase participation among older patients, particularly when studies are designed to be generalized to an elderly population as is the case with arthritis research. Strategies used in this recruitment protocol designed to remove literacy-related barriers to recruitment may be responsible for the observation that subjects with lower education did not have a higher rate of refusal. Such strategies deserve further study.

Objective: To review the literature on gender differences and issues of self-confidence in medical students and to present original research on observers' perceptions of medical student confidence., Methods: One hundred forty-one 3rd year medical students at Indiana University School of Medicine were videotaped during their objective structured clinical examination (OSCE). Trained coders rated how confident the student appeared and coded a variety of nonverbal behaviors at the beginning, middle, and end of the interaction. Analysis focused on gender differences in coders' ratings of perceived confidence., Results: Female medical students were viewed as significantly less confident than male medical students (F(1,133)=4.45, p<0.05), especially at the beginning of the interaction., Conclusion: Past research indicates that despite performing equally to their male peers, female medical students consistently report decreased self-confidence and increased anxiety, particularly over issues related to their competence. In a standardized patient interaction examination situation, female medical students also appeared significantly less confident than male medical students to independent observers., Practice Implications: Medical educators should focus on issues of female students' confidence, increasing faculty sensitivity, and publicly recognizing and discussing perceptions of confidence.

Background: Asthma is one of the most prevalent chronic conditions in the United States, yet despite the existence of national guidelines, nearly three fourths of patients with asthma do not have adequate control and clinical adherence to guidelines is low. While there are many reasons for this, physician inertia with respect to treatment change is partly to blame. Research suggests that patients who ask for specific tests and treatments are more likely to receive them., Objectives: This study investigated the impact and experience of using an interactive patient website designed to give patients individual feedback about their condition and to suggest tailored questions for patients to ask their physician. The website was designed to be used prior to a physician visit, to increase the likelihood that patients would receive recommended tests and treatments., Methods: A total of 37 adult patients with asthma participated in semi-structured telephone interviews aimed at eliciting information about their experiences with the website. Transcripts were coded using qualitative data analysis techniques and software. Themes were developed from subsets of codes generated through the analysis. In addition, 26 physicians were surveyed regarding their impressions of the website., Results: Opportunities exist for improving website feedback, although the majority of both patient and physician respondents held favorable opinions about the site. Two major themes emerged regarding patients' experiences with the website. First, many patients who used the website had a positive shift in their attitudes regarding interactions with their physicians. Second, use of the website prompted patients to become more actively involved in their asthma care. No patient reported any negative experiences as a result of using the website. Physicians rated the website positively., Conclusions: Patients perceived that the interactive website intervention improved communication and interaction with their physicians, suggesting that patients can play a role in overcoming the clinical inertia of providers. Although the design and content of the website can be improved upon, the main findings suggest that use of the website is well accepted and is perceived to improve the quality of care that patients receive.