title: Cross-cultural medical education: can patient-centered cultural competency training be effective in non-Western countries?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  No evidence addresses the effectiveness of patient-centered cultural competence training in non-Western settings.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To examine whether a patient-centered cultural competency curriculum improves medical students' skills in eliciting the patients' perspective and exploring illness-related social factors.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty-seven medical students in Taiwan were randomly assigned to either the control (n = 27) or one of two intervention groups: basic (n = 15) and extensive (n = 15). Both intervention groups received two 2-hour patient-centered cultural competency workshops. In addition, the extensive intervention group received a 2-hour practice session. The control group received no training.
  
  
  RESULTS
  At the end of the clerkship, all students were evaluated with an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE). Students in the extensive intervention group scored significantly higher than the basic intervention and control groups in eliciting the patient's perspective (F = 18.38, p < 0.001, eta(2) = 0.40). Scores of both intervention groups were significantly higher than the control group in the exploring social factors (F = 6.66, p = 0.003, eta(2) = 0.20).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patient-centered cultural competency training can produce improvement in medical students' cross-cultural communication skills in non-Western settings, especially when adequate practice is provided.
authors.affiliation: National Taiwan University, Taipei City, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Ming-Jung
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Ho
authors.forename: Grace
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.forename: Keng-Lin
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Mary Catherine
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Beach
authors.forename: Alexander R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Green
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003142:Communication; D054521:Cultural Competency; D004493:Education; D004501:Education, Medical; D004521:Educational Measurement; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011361:Professional Competence; D013337:Students, Medical; D013624:Taiwan; D055815:Young Adult
references.citation: Acad Med. 2005 Jun;80(6):578-86
references.pmid: 15917363