title: Impact of a faculty development programme for teaching communication skills on participants' practice.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  A 6-month faculty development programme was designed to improve supervisors' feedback to junior doctors on their clinical communication skills (CS) and included both CS and teaching skills training. The aim of this study was to assess supervisors' views on the impact of the programme on their subsequent teaching and communication practice.
  
  
  METHODS
  28 clinical supervisors at the Geneva University Hospitals, from either inpatient or outpatient settings (general internists or primary care specialists), undertook a six-session faculty development programme, between 2009 and 2011, and each completed a short questionnaire before and 1 month after the course. Between 3 and 6 months after the course, the participants were interviewed about their views on the impact of the course on their practice using a semistructured interview. Interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim and analysed thematically.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The percentage of participants who reported teaching CS at least once a week had increased from 5/26 (19%) to 8/26 (30%), p=0.07. Participants reported using teaching skills, especially giving structured feedback. Use of newly acquired teaching skills was more likely when participants had protected time for teaching or were involved in formal teaching activities. Even participants who reported minimal teaching activity found the newly acquired CS to be useful, both with their own patients and in other professional situations. The few participants who explicitly reported teaching regularly CS in practice had generally become formal teachers in CS training.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A faculty development programme on how to teach CS is perceived to be useful by clinical supervisors to acquire new skills, but using them in the workplace appears to depend on creation of a supportive environment with protected time for teaching. Involving supervisors in formal communication teaching may be one way to ensure continued use of newly learned teaching skills.
authors.affiliation: Division of Primary Care, Department of Community Care, Primary Care and Emergency, Geneva University Hospitals, , Geneva, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Noelle
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Junod Perron
authors.forename: Stephane
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cullati
authors.forename: Patricia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Hudelson
authors.forename: Mathieu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nendaz
authors.forename: Diana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dolmans
authors.forename: Cees
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: van der Vleuten
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards*; D003142:Communication; D004503:Education, Medical, Graduate / Q000592:standards*; D005180:Faculty, Medical; D005260:Female; D006785:Hospitals, University; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010820:Physicians; D011361:Professional Competence / Q000592:standards; D016730:Program Development; D013192:Staff Development; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013557:Switzerland
keywords: communication skills; faculty programme; transfer; practice; teaching