Mastery Learning in Communication Skills
Study Details
Study Description
Brief Summary
The goal of this study is to determine whether mastery learning in communication skills can improve skills in a simulated environment and have translational improvements in outcomes. The main questions it aims to answer are: 1. Does mastery learning improve skills in the simulation laboratory? 2. Does mastery learning improve clinical skills as seen by milestone performance? and 3 Does mastery learning improve burnout levels? The study is a multi-institutional randomized controlled trial of anesthesiology residents from five different residency programs. Participants will be randomized to mastery training in communication skills and standard of care, which is vicarious learning. Researchers will compare these two groups to see if mastery learning improves skills and translational outcomes.
| Condition or Disease | Intervention/Treatment | Phase |
|---|---|---|
|
N/A |
Study Design
Arms and Interventions
| Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
|---|---|
| Experimental: Mastery Learning Group
|
Behavioral: Mastery learning in communication skills
Participants will undergo simulation-based mastery learning curriculum in difficult conversations.
|
| No Intervention: Standard of Care Group
|
Outcome Measures
Primary Outcome Measures
- Communication skills [one year]
Post test checklist skills scores, a 16-item checklist was developed using the modified Delphi technique with possible scores of 0 (lowest) to 16 (highest). All items in the checklist are graded dichotomously and (1 if done correctly and 0 if not done or done incorrectly.
Secondary Outcome Measures
- Milestones Performance [two years]
The ACGME interpersonal and communication core competency is subdivided into three Anesthesiology Milestones: Patient and Family-centered communication, Interprofessional and Team Communication, and Communication within Health Care Systems. Each milestone is graded on a score of 1 (novice) to 5 (expert) by each residency program's Clinical Competency Committee (CCC).
- Burnout levels [1.5 years]
The Maslach Burnout Inventory Scale (MBI-9) will be used to estimate the levels of burnout prior to participation in the intervention, immediately after course completion, and at 2 and 6 months after training. The MBI is a measure of job burnout defined by three subscales: emotional exhaustion (EE) (9 items), depersonalization (DP) (5 items), and professional accomplishment (PA) (8 items), each with 7-point Likert-type, frequency response scale (0 = never, 1 = a few times a year or less, 2 = once a month or less, 3 = a few times a month, 4 = once a week, 5 = a few times a week, 6 = every day) [1, 2]. Scales are scored such that higher scores indicate more of each construct. Higher scores on the EE and DP subscales indicate a higher burnout symptom burden; lower scores on the PA subscale indicate a higher burnout symptom burden.
Eligibility Criteria
Criteria
Inclusion Criteria:
- Anesthesiology residents rotating at Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago
Exclusion Criteria:
-
Participant refusal
-
Study participants who have already undergone the mastery learning in difficult conversations course.
Contacts and Locations
Locations
No locations specified.Sponsors and Collaborators
- Ann & Robert H Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago
Investigators
- Principal Investigator: Heather Ballard, MD, Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago
Study Documents (Full-Text)
None provided.More Information
Publications
None provided.- 20235952