Evaluation of a simulation-based Risk Management and Communication Masterclass to reduce the risk of complaints, medicolegal and dentolegal claims

Abstract

ObjectivesTo understand clinicians’ experiences, learning and professional impacts following participation in a Risk Management and Communication Masterclass (RMCM) designed and delivered by Medical Protection Society. To identify the course’s strengths and areas for enhancement.DesignMixed method study including semistructured telephone interviews. Interviews were conducted between October and December 2017, 6–30 months after course participation. Data were subjected to a thematic analysis. Quantitative analysis of participants’ feedback ratings (n=486) on RMCMs delivered between December 2014 and May 2017 was also undertaken.SettingRMCMs were delivered to Doctors and Dentists based in the UK and Ireland and South Africa. Participants: A sample of 12 volunteer doctors (Obstetricians/Gynaecologists, Orthopaedic/Spinal Surgeons, General Surgeons, Paediatricians, General Practitioners) and dentists chosen to represent different clinical specialities accepted the invitation to participate.ResultsStudy participants reported examples of person-centred communication skills such as empathy, shared-decision making and managing patient expectations in their workplaces following participation in the RMCM. Many clinicians gave examples describing how they used the communication models they learned when back at work. They also demonstrated a better understanding of the motivations for patients to complain or claim. RMCM course participants’ high feedback ratings provided further evidence that the course was valuable and met learning objectives.ConclusionsIt may prove difficult to demonstrate quantitatively that liability improves as a direct result of risk management and communications training. Our results on other dimensions (reactions, learning, behaviour change and impact) suggest that the RMCM has a positive and durable effect based on participant feedback.

‘Working Diagnosis’ as a Means to Reduce Cognitive Bias

“…Uzes may have had knowledge of liquorice since the Arab-Islamic extension from Spain into France in the eight century. 2 The town has a liquorice factory, set up by Henry Lafont in 1862. It has been owned by the German company Haribo since 1985 and now also boasts the Haribo liquorice museum.…”

“…SBL has been used as a risk management strategy in different healthcare systems around the globe and evaluations have indicated favourable outcomes to support its use in this regard. 2 SBL can be applied as learning modality to improve patient safety in healthcare settings and has a benefi t of being able to be tailored to the needs of learners, whilst allowing for deliverable positive outcomes and cost effectiveness. 3 SBL is being used around the world but there has been a special emphasis on its use in the NHS in the UK, as it has been seen as a way of delivering patient-centred high-quality education to NHS staff to improve patient safety and risk manage serious incidents.…”

“…Although our paper 1 focused on education and training, simulation is a very effective form of assessment as demonstrated by the popularity of objective structured clinical examinations in both postgraduate and undergraduate education. 2 Simulation can be used for research into topics that are diffi cult to study in an authentic clinical environment. One good example is the demonstration of the effectiveness of using surgical-crisis checklists.…”

“…1 Talarico et al recently reported on psychiatric involvement in 116 patients with BD and compared them to a control group of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and chronic hypertension. 2 The BD cohort was divided in two groups depending on the presence or otherwise of neurological features. The frequency of bipolar disorder was signifi cantly higher in the BD cohort than in disease controls (p < 0.001).…”

“…2 It is accepted clinical practice to compile a list of differential diagnoses -these each have varying degrees of plausibility.…”