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Differences in perceptions of communication between physicians and medical students regarding possible medical errors
Thesis

Differences in perceptions of communication between physicians and medical students regarding possible medical errors

Andrew Jiang
Master of Public Health (M.P.H.), Drexel University
03 Dec 2012
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17918/etd-3943
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Jiang_Andrew_2012782.29 kB
PDF Project Access upon request, Email title, URL, or DOI to archives@drexel.edu
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Jiang_Andrew_2012_Suppl11.03 MB
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Abstract

Communication Medical Errors Physicians Medical Students Public Health
Objectives: Open communication, a trait seen in many safe companies operating in dangerous environments, is lacking in healthcare settings. It is believed that failure to communicate, the suppression of concerns and hesitancies about medical orders, processes, or procedures, can lead to errors in healthcare, a problem that contributes to 44,000 to 98,000 excess deaths annually. Medical students can assimilate these behaviors and pass them onto future generations of physicians. This project aims to assess the communication perceptions between medical students and their attending physician supervisors. Methods: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted with physicians and 3rd/4th year medical students. Students and physicians were recruited from Drexel University College of Medicine using a survey derived from the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire. The median responses were compared between the two groups to gain insight into the communication attitudes. Results: 32.7% of qualified students and 7.2% of qualified physicians responded to the survey. Data suggests that physicians were open to medical students critiquing their performance or discussing their medical errors while responses from medical students suggest that they felt uncomfortable doing so. Physician respondents also indicated that they expected and encouraged medical students to voice safety concerns while medical students were less inclined to do so. Conclusion: Data from this pilot project suggests the presence of communication gaps between physicians and medical students. Repeating this survey with a larger sample size and utilizing focus groups may increase the generalizability of the data and increase the understanding of the responses provided by physicians and students.

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