Communication experiences of healthcare students whilst managing adults with communication disorders.
Vrinda Rathiram, Lauren O Neilson, Azraa Syed Kassim and 2 others
PMID 35695421WHAT IT FOUND
Final-year healthcare students managing adults with communication disorders reported expressive and receptive language difficulties as their biggest challenge, leading to feelings of frustration and helplessness.
They relied heavily on gestures and writing, but often lacked training in augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems.
Key findings
01Twenty of 23 students reported difficulty communicating with patients, citing expressive and receptive language deficits as the primary barriers to obtaining history and providing instructions.
02Students frequently felt emotionally strained and helpless when unable to interpret non-verbal cues, with many noting that a lack of training in AAC systems hindered effective two-way communication.
03While gestures and writing were the most common strategies used, significant gaps existed in training, with 4 of 7 medical students reporting they did not implement specific communication strategies when difficulties arose.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study was conducted at a single university in South Africa, so the experiences of these students may not reflect those in other institutions or countries. Data were collected via an electronic questionnaire, which limits the depth of understanding compared to face-to-face interviews and may have missed non-verbal cues from the participants themselves. The sample size was small (23 participants), with only two occupational therapy students, which may limit the generalisability of findings specific to that discipline. Self-reported data may be subject to recall bias or social desirability bias regarding the use of strategies or feelings of competence.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the reported lack of AAC use by medical students' patients as evidence that these patients do not need or benefit from AAC. It likely reflects a lack of screening and training among the medical students, not the absence of the need in the patient population.