La comunicazione dell’errore in medicina : valutazione di un’esperienza formativa

The Workshop “To assess the impact of a workshop on disclosure of medical errors on clinicians’ attitudes” is part of the Italian Programme to Enhance Relational and Communication Skills (PERCS). This interdisciplinary workshop is based on the simulation and debriefing of two case scenarios in which an error has to be disclosed to the family. Before and after the workshop, participants were administered a questionnaire composed of 5-point Likert scale items and Yes/No questions on: preparedness, communication skills, relational abilities, self-confidence, and anxiety in communicating a clinical error. The post-questionnaire also included open-ended questions regarding: useful aspects of the workshop and reflections on learning. 10 workshops were offered in two Italian hospitals enrolling a total of 119 participants (physicians, nurses, physical therapists, psychologists etc.) Participants reported an increase of their sense of preparedness (p=.000), communication skills (p=.000), relational abilities (p=.000), self-confidence (p=.000) and a reduction of anxiety (p=.000). Useful aspects of the workshop were: use of simulations, enrollment of interdisciplinary participants, and pedagogical principles. Reflections on learning included: attitudinal change, reframed perspective on clinical error, importance of teamwork, and acquisition of new communication skills. Our findings showed that it is possible to change clinicians’ attitudes and preparation on disclosure of clinical errors through an educational programme. Further studies could verify the transferability of this attitudinal change on actual clinicians’ behaviors.