Education
Delivering Bad News
Back to Multidiscipline Courses
The Obstetric and Gynecology Residency Training program offers a course in Delivering Bad News using Simulated patients. Scenarios are developed using actual situations that occur within the specialty of OB/GYN. The residents’ encounters are videotaped using “time out” and “re-wind” methodology. The course director may call a “time out” during the scenario and offer suggestions and “re-wind” the scenario to present a different outcome.
Learning Objectives
- Exhibit effective patient/physician communications
- Model empathy in patient interactions
- Use the GRIEV-ING communication tool to deliver bad news
Expected Outcomes
- Communicate to the couple that their baby is dead
- Discusses the labor and delivery process
- Use the GRIEV-ING tool to help couple navigate through the discussions of autopsy, genetic testing and disposal of the body
| G | Gather (Ensured that all important survivors were presented prior to delivery of the death notification.) |
| R | Resources (Facilitated access to support resources.) |
| I | Identify (Clearly stated the name of the patient; clearly stated his/her role in the care of the patient.) Check for Understanding (Determine the level of knowledge the survivors possessed prior to their arrival in the waiting room.) |
| E | Educate (Clearly indicated the cause of death in an understandable manner.) |
| V | Verify (Avoided using euphemisms.) Space (Paused to allow the family to assimilate the information before discussing details.) |
| I | Inquire (Encouraged the survivor to summarize important information to check for understanding. |
| N | Nuts and Bolts(Explained the addressed post-mortem details, including organ donation. |
| G | Established personal availability and provided contact information to answer questions for the survivor at a later time. |
Communication Skills
The Gastroenterology Fellowship Program of West Penn Allegheny Health System developed a course to enhance physician/patient communication skills.
Course Objectives
- Demonstrate the ability to integrate knowledge, professionalism, communication and interpersonal skills into a physical assessment.
- Utilize effective communication skills to address patient pain, symptom management and establish a patient-centered system of care that assists patients to understand the nature of their illness and make informed decisions about their care.
- Demonstrate the ability to provide care that addresses the control of distressing physical, psychological and spiritual symptoms, considering different cultural backgrounds to meet the needs of the patient and family.
- Recognize the stress associated with a serious illness and its’ impact on patients and their families.
- Identify the need to address and effectively deal with the emotional aspects of a serious illness on the patient and family and offer timely referrals to interdisciplinary team members to meet these identified needs.
