Abstract
BACKGROUND: Efficient communication skills are essential for doctors to extract relevant information, counsel the patients and formulate a warm relationship with the patients. It’s essential for medical schools to
incorporate communication skills learning courses in their undergraduate curricula. This study assesses the
attitudes of Pakistani medical students toward learning communication skills.
METHODS: A prospective, cross sectional study was designed to ascertain the attitude of students studying in
Jinnah Sindh Medical University towards formal teaching of communication skills. From all five years, 480
medical students participated in the study. Written informed consent was received Communication Skills
Attitude Scale (CSAS) was selected as the assessment tool. Approval from Ethics review committee was
sought. Data was entered and analyzed using SPSS v. 23.
RESULTS: With a mean age of 20.66 years, 39.2% (n=188) were preclinical students and 60.8% (n=292) were
clinical students. Female to male proportion was 60.4% vs. 39.6%. Cronbach’s alpha of PAS was above 0.7
and that of NAS was less than 0.7. Therefore, only the PAS was considered for analysis. PAS mean score of the
students was significantly related to the five years of medical education. The trend of positive attitude
declined as the seniority in education was achieved.
CONCLUSION: In conclusion, this study demonstrated a positive attitude toward learning communication
skills among younger and fresher medical students. This study adds to the growing evidence that supports
the investigation of medical students’ attitudes towards learning communication skills and its critical role in
curriculum design. The study opens gates for more investigations in this domain and modifications in medical
education curriculum.
Ghazala Usman, Amber Tahir Siddiqui. (2018) Assessing The Attitude Of Medical Students Towards Learning Communication Skills, The Pakistan Journal of Medicine and Dentistry, Volume-7, Issue-1.
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