Implementation of palliative care as a mandatory cross-disciplinary subject (QB13) at the Medical Faculty of the Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, Germany.

There is no author summary for this article yet. Authors can add summaries to their articles on ScienceOpen to make them more accessible to a non-specialist audience.

Abstract

By means of the revision of the Medical Licensure Act for Physicians (ÄAppO) in 2009, undergraduate palliative care education (UPCE) was incorporated as a mandatory cross sectional examination subject (QB13) in medical education in Germany. Its implementation still constitutes a major challenge for German medical faculties. There is a discrepancy between limited university resources and limited patient availabilities and high numbers of medical students. Apart from teaching theoretical knowledge and skills, palliative care education is faced with the particular challenge of imparting a professional and adequate attitude towards incurably ill and dying patients and their relatives.

Related collections

Most cited references 39

Record: found
Abstract: found
Article: found

Is Open Access

Evaluating an evidence-based curriculum in undergraduate palliative care education: piloting a phase II exploratory trial for a complex intervention

Christian Schulz, Mischa F Möller, Daniel Seidler … (2013)

Background By 2013 Palliative Care will become a mandatory examination subject in the medical curriculum in Germany. There is a pressing need for effective and well-designed curricula and assessment methods. Debates are on going as how Undergraduate Palliative Care Education (UPCE) should be taught and how knowledge and skills should be assessed. It is evident by this time that the development process of early curricula in the US and UK has led to a plethora of diverse curricula which seem to be partly ineffective in improving the care for the seriously ill and dying offered by newly qualified doctors, as is demonstrated in controlled evaluations. The goals of this study were to demonstrate an evidence-based approach towards developing UPCE curricula and investigate the change in medical students’ self-perceived readiness to deal with palliative care patients and their families. Methods To evaluate the effects of the UPCE curriculum we chose a prospective, controlled, quasi-experimental, pre, retrospective-pre, post study design. A total of n = 37 3rd and 4th –year medical students were assigned to the intervention group (n = 15; 4th -year) and to the control group (n = 22; 3rd-year). Resting on the self-efficacy concept of Bandura the measurement was conducted by a refined test-battery based on two independent measurements (the revised Collet-Lester-Fear-of-Death-Scale and the instrument of the “Program in Palliative Care Education and Practice” at Harvard Medical School) including 68 items altogether in a five-point Likert-scale. These items were designed to test elementary skills in caring for the dying and their relatives as perceived by medical undergraduates. Datasets from both groups were analysed by paired and independent two-sample t-test. The TREND statement for reporting non-randomized evaluations was applied for reporting on this quasi-experimental study. Results Three constructs showed statistically significant differences comparing the intervention group before and after. Willingness to accompany a dying patient increased from 21.40 to 37.30 (p < .001). Self-estimation of competence in communication with dying patients and their relatives increased from 12.00 to 23.60 (p = .001). Finally, self-estimation of knowledge and skills in Palliative Care increased from 8.30 to 13.20 (p = .001). Conclusions This study is a small but systematic step towards rigorous curricular development in palliative care. Our manualised curriculum is available for scrutiny and scientific feedback to support an open and constructive process of best-practice comparison in palliative care.

0 comments Cited 85 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

Record: found
Abstract: found
Article: not found

AMEE Medical Education Guide No. 24: Portfolios as a method of student assessment.

S. Davis, R Harden, M. J. Pippard … (2001)

This guide is intended to inform medical teachers about the use of portfolios for student assessment. It provides a background to the topic, reviews the range of assessment purposes for which portfolios have been used, identifies possible portfolio contents and outlines the advantages of portfolio assessment with particular focus on assessing professionalism. The experience of one medical school, the University of Dundee, is presented as a case study. The current state of understanding of the technical, psychometric issues relating to portfolio assessment is clarified. The final part of the paper provides a practical guide for those wishing to design and implement portfolio assessment in their own institutions. Five steps in the portfolio assessment process are identified: documentation, reflection, evaluation, defence and decision. It is concluded that portfolio assessment is an important addition to the assessor's toolkit. Reasons for using portfolios for assessment purposes include the impact that they have in driving student learning and their ability to measure outcomes such as professionalism that are difficult to assess using traditional methods.

0 comments Cited 35 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

Record: found
Abstract: found
Article: found

Is Open Access

Effective healthcare teams require effective team members: defining teamwork competencies

Sandra G Leggat (2007)

Background Although effective teamwork has been consistently identified as a requirement for enhanced clinical outcomes in the provision of healthcare, there is limited knowledge of what makes health professionals effective team members, and even less information on how to develop skills for teamwork. This study identified critical teamwork competencies for health service managers. Methods Members of a state branch of the professional association of Australian health service managers participated in a teamwork survey. Results The 37% response rate enabled identification of a management teamwork competency set comprising leadership, knowledge of organizational goals and strategies and organizational commitment, respect for others, commitment to working collaboratively and to achieving a quality outcome. Conclusion Although not part of the research question the data suggested that the competencies for effective teamwork are perceived to be different for management and clinical teams, and there are differences in the perceptions of effective teamwork competencies between male and female health service managers. This study adds to the growing evidence that the focus on individual skill development and individual accountability and achievement that results from existing models of health professional training, and which is continually reinforced by human resource management practices within healthcare systems, is not consistent with the competencies required for effective teamwork.

0 comments Cited 30 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

All references

Author and article information

Journal

Journal ID (iso-abbrev): GMS Z Med Ausbild

Title: GMS Zeitschrift fur medizinische Ausbildung

ISSN (Electronic): 1860-3572

ISSN (Print): 1860-3572

Publication date (Electronic): 2015

Volume: 32

Issue: 1

Affiliations

[1 ] Heinrich-Heine-University, Medical Faculty, Interdisciplinary Centre for Palliative Medicine, Düsseldorf, Germany ; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School and Department of Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, USA ; University Hospital Düsseldorf, Clinical Institute of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Düsseldorf, Germany.

[2 ] Heinrich-Heine-University, Medical Faculty, Interdisciplinary Centre for Palliative Medicine, Düsseldorf, Germany.

[3 ] University Hospital Düsseldorf, Clinical Institute of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Düsseldorf, Germany.

[4 ] University Hospital Düsseldorf, Institute of General Medicine, Düsseldorf, Germany.

[5 ] University Hospital Dusseldorf, Institute of Transplantation Diagnostics and Cell Therapeutics and Clinical Ethics Committee, Düsseldorf, Germany.

[6 ] University Hospital Düsseldorf, Roman Catholic Healthcare Chaplaincy, Düsseldorf, Germany.

[7 ] University Hospital Düsseldorf, Protestant Healthcare Chaplaincy, Düsseldorf, Germany.

[8 ] Heinrich-Heine-University, Medical Faculty, Deanery of Student Affairs, Düsseldorf, Germany.

[9 ] Heinrich-Heine-University, Medical Faculty, Institute of Forensic Medicine, Düsseldorf, Germany.

[10 ] University Hospital Düsseldorf, Centre for Education and Professional Development in Healthcare, Düsseldorf, Germany.

[11 ] Heinrich-Heine-University, Medical Faculty, Interdisciplinary Centre for Palliative Medicine, Düsseldorf, Germany ; Heinrich-Heine-University, Medical Faculty, Clinic of Anaesthesiology, Düsseldorf, Germany.

Article

Publisher Item ID: zma000948 Publisher Item ID: Doc6

DOI: 10.3205/zma000948

PMC ID: 4330636

PubMed ID: 25699109

SO-VID: cba4e388-dcbb-49f5-b1e0-a318fde1fb75

History

Keywords: QB13,attitude towards palliative care,cross-disciplinary subject,e-learning, group sessions for self-development and self-reflection,interprofessional education,palliative care curriculum,virtual simulated/standardised patient contact

Implementation of palliative care as a mandatory cross-disciplinary subject (QB13) at the Medical Faculty of the Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, Germany.

Read this article at

Abstract

Related collections

Medical Physics Publishing

Most cited references 39

Evaluating an evidence-based curriculum in undergraduate palliative care education: piloting a phase II exploratory trial for a complex intervention

AMEE Medical Education Guide No. 24: Portfolios as a method of student assessment.

Effective healthcare teams require effective team members: defining teamwork competencies

Author and article information

Journal

Affiliations

Article

History

Comments

Comment on this article

Similar content 14

Cited by 9

Most referenced authors 520