Outcome of Communication Training in Veterinary Studies: Influence on the Perception of the Relevance of Veterinary Competencies and Self-Assessment of Communication Skills

Abstract

Since communication skills contribute significantly to professional success among veterinarians, there is a particular focus on developing communication classes in veterinary curricula. At Freie Universität Berlin, an e-learning course covering the basics of communication and a practical communication course based on role plays with and without simulation persons have been established. The outcome of these communication courses on the assessment of the relevance of several veterinary competencies and on the self-assessment of communication skills using the SE-12 questionnaire was investigated. For this purpose, students were surveyed before and after the e-learning course as well as before and after the practical course. Veterinarians were also surveyed on the relevance of veterinary competencies. The relevance of communicative competencies for professional success was rated significantly higher by the students after completing the practical course than by the other students and the veterinarians. Self-assessment of communication skills showed little increase after the e-learning course, but a significant increase after the practical course. Thus, an effective outcome of the communication classes was observed mainly after the practical course. However, the effect of the e-learning course cannot be ruled out since the students participating in the practical course have also completed the e-learning course beforehand.

Evaluation of an Interprofessional Blended Learning Course Focusing on Communication within Veterinary Teams

“…A study indicated that also shorter durations resulted in fewer measurable differences among participants but showed positive changes on the part of the pet owners [ 47 ]. As already assessed by Bahramsoltani et al [ 37 ], especially the practical training is useful for an improvement in communications skills. This was also obvious in our evaluation when comparing the online course with the practical learning sessions.…”

“…The implementation and reporting of any course evaluation on interprofessional courses in the veterinary field are relatively rare [ 14 ]. Even if there are papers about communication courses in this field [ 36 , 37 , 38 ] and about interprofessional courses in other healthcare sectors [ 39 , 40 , 41 ], the gap in veterinary medicine is huge.…”

Developing Communication Competency in the Veterinary Curriculum

“…Veterinary schools around the world no longer view communication competency as an optional inclusion or as a set of skills that are learned by example in the curriculum. This is because these skills are amongst the most highly valued and necessary workplace skills for new graduates [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21], and accrediting bodies explicitly require that these competencies be demonstrated by all graduates [22][23][24].…”