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Biomedical subjects

Angela Towle

Publications and source records attributed to Angela Towle.

6 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Doctor-patient communications in the Aboriginal community: towards the development of educational programs.

OBJECTIVE: Aboriginal people in Canada have poorer health than the rest of the population. Reasons for health disparities are many and include problems in communication between doctor and patient. The objective of this study was to understand doctor-patient communication in Aboriginal communities in order to design educational interventions for medical students based on the needs and experiences of patients. METHODS: Experiences of good and poor communication were studied by semi-structured interviews or focus groups with 22 Aboriginal community members, 2 community health representatives and 2 Aboriginal trainee physicians. Transcribed data were coded and subjected to thematic analysis. RESULTS: Positive and negative experiences of communicating with physicians fell into three broad and interrelated themes: their histories as First Nations citizens; the extent to which the physician was trusted; time in the medical interview. CONCLUSION: Aboriginal peoples' history affects their communication with physicians; barriers may be overcome when patients feel they have a voice and the time for it to be heard. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Physicians can improve communication with Aboriginal patients by learning about their history, building trust and giving time.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Putting informed and shared decision making into practice.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the practice, experiences and views of motivated and trained family physicians as they attempt to implement informed and shared decision making (ISDM) in routine practice and to identify and understand the barriers they encounter. BACKGROUND: Patient involvement in decision making about their health care has been the focus of much academic activity. Although significant conceptual and experimental work has been done, ISDM rarely occurs. Physician attitudes and lack of training are identified barriers. DESIGN: Qualitative analysis of transcripts of consultations and key informant group interviews. SETTINGS AND PARTICIPANTS: Six family physicians received training in the ISDM competencies. Audiotapes of office consultations were made before and after training. Transcripts of consultations were examined to identify behavioural markers associated with each competency and the range of expression of the competencies. The physicians attended group interviews at the end of the study to explore experiences of ISDM. RESULTS: The physicians liked the ISDM model and thought that they should put it into practice. Evidence from transcripts indicated they were able to elicit concerns, ideas and expectations (although not about management) and agree an action plan. They did not elicit preferences for role or information. They sometimes offered choices. They had difficulty achieving full expression of any of the competencies and integrating ISDM into their script for the medical interview. The study also identified a variety of competency-specific barriers. CONCLUSION: A major barrier to the practice of ISDM by motivated physicians appears to be the need to change well-established patterns of communication with patients.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

Enhancing the relationship and improving communication between adolescents and their health care providers: a school based intervention by medical students.

OBJECTIVE: To develop, implement and evaluate a workshop to help adolescents develop independent and active relationships with their physicians. METHODS: A needs-assessment survey informed the development of a workshop delivered by medical student volunteers and incorporated into the career and personal planning curriculum of high schools in Vancouver, Canada. RESULTS: Over a 6-year period, 64 workshops were delivered by 181 medical students to 1651 high school students in six schools. CONCLUSION: The workshop is acceptable, do-able, effective and sustainable, characteristics that arise from the mutual benefits to all the groups involved: the medical school, the school board, the medical students, the high school teachers and students. The workshop provides a model for providing health care education to adolescents in the community. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Teaching adolescents the importance of good doctor-patient communication encourages them to take ongoing responsibility for their health care and is an alternative route to direct health care education.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Patient perceptions that limit a community-based intervention to promote participation.

A workshop designed to teach seniors to communicate more effectively with their physicians and enhance patient participation in the consultation was held in a community centre. A grounded theory analysis of follow-up telephone interviews provided examples of effectiveness but also revealed six categories of barriers to changing the pattern of established communication, particularly over the short term.

Aged↗
PubMed2002

An advanced communication skills course for fourth-year, post-clerkship students.

OBJECTIVE: A novel five-module advanced communication skills course entitled "Doctor-Patient Relationships" was planned and implemented in 2000-01 at the University of British Columbia (UBC). The course was part of the final four-month component of the new MD undergraduate program: Effective Skills for Medical Practice. The goals of the communication skills course were to (1) address problems experienced by the students so far; (2) address deficiencies in achieving the UBC exit competencies; (3) help the students pass the Medical Council of Canada examinations, in particular objectives related to the Considerations of the Legal, Ethical, and Organizational aspects of the practice of medicine (CLEO); and (4) help students prepare for their roles beyond undergraduate medicine (residency, independent practice). DESCRIPTION: The course was developed by an interdisciplinary team (family practice, pathology, pediatrics, psychiatry, surgery) with input from students. The broad strengths and weaknesses of their communication skills training were identified by seven third-year medical students who kept logs over the course of their clinical clerkships to document their learning of communication skills. Analysis of these logs plus feedback meetings with the students revealed attitudinal and skills issues that needed to be addressed in the new course. The goals and principles of the course were in part agreed upon by focus groups with students, attended by faculty observers, to ensure their relevance to students. The first module "Beyond the Mask: Surviving and Thriving in Residency Training" is designed to focus students' attention on the personal relevance of developing excellence in communication skills in preparation for residency training. It includes a video of residents talking about their experiences of communication problems to trigger reflection and discussion. In the remaining four modules the students are required to put communication skills together with their medical knowledge. Each module includes pre-readings, video demonstrations (in sessions 4 and 5), practice with standardized patients (total of 14 scenarios) and structured feedback from SPs, students, and tutor. The themes of the sessions are "Dealing with Emotionally Challenging Patient Situations (informing about bad news), "Compliance and Patient Information," "Informed Consent and Shared Decision Making," and "Difficult Physician-Patient Encounters." Each module lasts two hours. The course was implemented for 120 students, facilitated by 14 tutors (seven to eight students per group). DISCUSSION: Student involvement in many different ways provided an important reality check and made us think about how to present the new course so that it was relevant and interesting to students. Attention to student input was a major contributor to the good evaluations given the course. Students rated the course highly: the relevance of the weekly themes was rated 4.21 on a five-point scale; the effectiveness of the SP interviews, 4.10; the effectiveness of the group discussion and feedback, 4.18; and overall course effectiveness in enhancing communication skills, 3.91. The tutors also rated the course highly, and the students rated the tutors highly. Minor changes will be made to the course next year based on the specific suggestions for improvement, which were identified.

British Columbia↗