TY - JOUR
T1 - "The patient as teacher" - thematic analysis of undergraduate medical students' experiences with an experiential learning project in palliative care
AU - Stocklassa, Stephanie
AU - Block, Susan
AU - Paal, Piret
AU - Elsner, Frank
N1 - Paal: Institute of Palliative Care, University of Tartu, Paracelsus Medical University, Salzburg, Austria
PY - 2024/10/9
Y1 - 2024/10/9
N2 - BackgroundExperiential learning holds high potential for medical students' education in palliative care. At RWTH Aachen University in Germany, medical students can participate in the course "The Patient as Teacher" offering a one-to-one exchange with a terminally ill patient over a period of several weeks complemented with four supervision sessions and writing of a reflective essay. The course had run from 2005 to 2020 before it was paused due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This study aimed to assess the course's value as a palliative care teaching tool by investigating students' motivation and experiences over the years 2005-2020.MethodsA stratified sample of 24 essays was taken from all submitted essays (n = 78), eight essays from the years 2005-2009, 2010-2014, and 2015-2020. Subsequently, a thematic analysis of the selected essays was conducted.ResultsThe students felt motivated by the opportunity to gain more experience in palliative care, to improve their communication skills and to decrease insecurities in interaction with terminally ill patients. They learned about the patient's biography and medical history, and encountered physical, psychological, social, and spiritual dimensions of living with a life-limiting disease. Moreover, they experienced relationship building and communication with a terminally ill patient outside their role as future doctors. Ultimately, they considered their participation as a beneficial experience on both a personal and professional level.ConclusionsThe course "The Patient as Teacher" presents a valuable tool for experiential learning in palliative care, which has elicited an unceasingly positive response among the students who participated over the years. It has facilitated medical students in overcoming insecurities in dealing with terminally ill patients and supported them in further developing their professional identity.
AB - BackgroundExperiential learning holds high potential for medical students' education in palliative care. At RWTH Aachen University in Germany, medical students can participate in the course "The Patient as Teacher" offering a one-to-one exchange with a terminally ill patient over a period of several weeks complemented with four supervision sessions and writing of a reflective essay. The course had run from 2005 to 2020 before it was paused due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This study aimed to assess the course's value as a palliative care teaching tool by investigating students' motivation and experiences over the years 2005-2020.MethodsA stratified sample of 24 essays was taken from all submitted essays (n = 78), eight essays from the years 2005-2009, 2010-2014, and 2015-2020. Subsequently, a thematic analysis of the selected essays was conducted.ResultsThe students felt motivated by the opportunity to gain more experience in palliative care, to improve their communication skills and to decrease insecurities in interaction with terminally ill patients. They learned about the patient's biography and medical history, and encountered physical, psychological, social, and spiritual dimensions of living with a life-limiting disease. Moreover, they experienced relationship building and communication with a terminally ill patient outside their role as future doctors. Ultimately, they considered their participation as a beneficial experience on both a personal and professional level.ConclusionsThe course "The Patient as Teacher" presents a valuable tool for experiential learning in palliative care, which has elicited an unceasingly positive response among the students who participated over the years. It has facilitated medical students in overcoming insecurities in dealing with terminally ill patients and supported them in further developing their professional identity.
KW - Experiential learning
KW - Palliative care
KW - Reflective writing
KW - Teaching
KW - Undergraduate medical students
UR - https://www.webofscience.com/api/gateway?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=pmu_pure&SrcAuth=WosAPI&KeyUT=WOS:001329344200002&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=WOS_CPL
U2 - 10.1186/s12904-024-01570-9
DO - 10.1186/s12904-024-01570-9
M3 - Original Article
C2 - 39385251
SN - 1472-684X
VL - 23
JO - BMC Palliative Care
JF - BMC Palliative Care
IS - 1
M1 - 239
ER -