PURPOSE: The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) has established communication as a core competency for physicians in training. However, data suggest that most pediatric residents perceive inadequate training in the delivery of bad news and the majority of former trainees in pediatric oncology received no formal training in the delivery of bad news during fellowship. The study examines communication training in ACGME accredited US pediatric hematology-oncology (PHO) fellowship programs. METHODS: An online survey was distributed to 315 PHO fellows in training via the American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology (ASPHO) fellow email registry. Each fellow received an initial request to participate and 2 reminders, while participation was encouraged through a random incentive drawing. RESULTS: One hundred and ten fellows (35%) responded. Eighty percent of respondents perceived communication training to be important to fellow education, however only 32% reported receiving communication training (other than direct observation). The most common reported teaching method of fellowship communication training was formal lecture (42%). Twenty-three percent of respondents reported neither communication training nor frequent feedback on their communication skills from faculty observation. This same group was the least satisfied with their programs' approach to teaching communication (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: There is limited communication training in PHO fellowships despite ACGME requirements and fellows' interest in this training. Didactic learning remains the most frequently described training method, yet educational theory identifies the limitation of didactic lectures alone. Communication training employing novel teaching methods and emphasizing communication challenges identified by fellows should be developed and evaluated.
PURPOSE: The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) has established communication as a core competency for physicians in training. However, data suggest that most pediatric residents perceive inadequate training in the delivery of bad news and the majority of former trainees in pediatric oncology received no formal training in the delivery of bad news during fellowship. The study examines communication training in ACGME accredited US pediatric hematology-oncology (PHO) fellowship programs. METHODS: An online survey was distributed to 315 PHO fellows in training via the American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology (ASPHO) fellow email registry. Each fellow received an initial request to participate and 2 reminders, while participation was encouraged through a random incentive drawing. RESULTS: One hundred and ten fellows (35%) responded. Eighty percent of respondents perceived communication training to be important to fellow education, however only 32% reported receiving communication training (other than direct observation). The most common reported teaching method of fellowship communication training was formal lecture (42%). Twenty-three percent of respondents reported neither communication training nor frequent feedback on their communication skills from faculty observation. This same group was the least satisfied with their programs' approach to teaching communication (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: There is limited communication training in PHO fellowships despite ACGME requirements and fellows' interest in this training. Didactic learning remains the most frequently described training method, yet educational theory identifies the limitation of didactic lectures alone. Communication training employing novel teaching methods and emphasizing communication challenges identified by fellows should be developed and evaluated.
Authors: Patricia J Hicks; Robert Englander; Daniel J Schumacher; Ann Burke; Bradley J Benson; Susan Guralnick; Stephen Ludwig; Carol Carraccio Journal: J Grad Med Educ Date: 2010-12
Authors: Ernest Frugé; Judith Margolin; Terzah Horton; Lakshmi Venkateswaran; Dean Lee; Donald L Yee; Donald Mahoney Journal: Pediatr Blood Cancer Date: 2010-12-01 Impact factor: 3.167
Authors: Jennifer W Mack; Joanne Wolfe; E Francis Cook; Holcombe E Grier; Paul D Cleary; Jane C Weeks Journal: J Clin Oncol Date: 2011-04-04 Impact factor: 44.544
Authors: Carma L Bylund; Richard Brown; Jennifer A Gueguen; Catherine Diamond; Jennifer Bianculli; David W Kissane Journal: Psychooncology Date: 2010-06 Impact factor: 3.894
Authors: Katharine E Brock; Harvey J Cohen; Barbara M Sourkes; Julie J Good; Louis P Halamek Journal: J Palliat Med Date: 2017-04-24 Impact factor: 2.947
Authors: Amulya A Nageswara Rao; Deepti M Warad; Amy L Weaver; Cathy D Schleck; Vilmarie Rodriguez Journal: J Cancer Educ Date: 2019-06 Impact factor: 2.037
Authors: Sarah L Rockwell; Cameka L Woods; Monica E Lemmon; Justin N Baker; Jennifer W Mack; Karen L Andes; Erica C Kaye Journal: Front Oncol Date: 2022-06-29 Impact factor: 5.738
Authors: Angela M Feraco; Sarah R Brand; Joshua Gagne; Amy Sullivan; Susan D Block; Joanne Wolfe Journal: Pediatr Blood Cancer Date: 2018-01-31 Impact factor: 3.167
Authors: Angela M Feraco; Sarah R Brand; Jennifer W Mack; Jennifer C Kesselheim; Susan D Block; Joanne Wolfe Journal: Pediatr Blood Cancer Date: 2016-01-29 Impact factor: 3.167
Authors: Stefan Essig; Claudia Steiner; Claudia E Kuehni; Heidemarie Weber; Alexander Kiss Journal: Pediatr Blood Cancer Date: 2016-04-15 Impact factor: 3.167