To characterise baseline levels and contextual triggers of public speaking anxiety (PSA) among family medicine residents and to examine whether a theory-driven educational intervention was associated with short-term changes in PSA across cognitive, behavioural, and psychological dimensions.

Effective communication is a core competency in primary healthcare. However, while clinical consultation skills are prioritised, academic presentation skills are systematically absent from most family medicine residency curricula. This ‘null curriculum’ leaves primary care trainees unprepared for professional advocacy, academic leadership, and teaching roles.

A quasi-experimental one-group pre-test–post-test study was conducted involving 199 family medicine residents at a tertiary hospital in Türkiye. A theory-based single-session educational intervention was delivered. PSA was measured using the validated Turkish Public Speaking Anxiety Scale (PSAS). The study was reported in accordance with TREND and CRISP guidelines for primary care research.

Before the intervention, 87.4% of residents had never received formal PSA training. Academic instructors were the most frequently reported source of anxiety (82.9%) compared with patient encounters (4.0%). Following the intervention, total PSAS scores were associated with a statistically significant short-term decrease (p < 0.001). Significant short-term reductions were observed across cognitive (p = 0.005), behavioural (p < 0.001), and psychological (p < 0.001) dimensions. In exploratory subgroup analyses, married residents (p = 0.026) and senior residents (p = 0.002) appeared to experience larger short-term improvements, although these findings should be interpreted cautiously. These findings suggest that structured educational support may be beneficial for a subset of family medicine residents and that academic presentation skills warrant consideration as part of residency training; however, given the mixed individual-level responses and absence of a control group, this recommendation should be treated as preliminary pending controlled longitudinal evidence.

The aim of this study was to examine how Swiss palliative care (PC) clinicians learn key communication skills, their perceived proficiency and comfort, and how often they perform different communication tasks.

Between October and November 2021, we surveyed Swiss PC clinicians on 22 communication tasks via an online survey.

Of 242 respondents, 231 provided complete data. Participants were mostly nurses (64%), female (79%), and on average 50 years old. Most reported learning communication through practice (89%) or observation (70%). Overall, perceived proficiency was moderate to high and slightly higher than comfort, but both varied considerably across tasks. Highest scores were for explaining PC and discussing physical symptoms, while lowest were for addressing spirituality and supporting patients who are parents in communicating with their children. Training showed moderate positive associations with perceived proficiency and comfort, though some tasks (e.g., prognosis, spirituality, and dying phase) were unrelated to training. Perceived proficiency and comfort were strongly correlated and both increased with experience. Physicians reported higher scores in illness-related discussions, whereas nurses reported more training in emotional and spiritual communication.

PC clinicians showed strong communication competence, but gaps remain in emotionally complex areas. Integrating technical, emotional, spiritual and family-centered communication training into core curricula may enhance care quality, and clinicians’ confidence and satisfaction. Strengthening experiential learning, reflective practice, and skills for managing emotionally demanding conversations may improve clinicians’ comfort and preparedness. Tailored training for nurses and physicians could optimize communication quality and support sustainable PC practice.

Staff biostatisticians are integral members of multidisciplinary research teams. Their leadership and communication skills are critical for the success of health research enterprises. This study evaluates the impact of a workshop delivered to this component of the clinical and translational research workforce.

Workshops were held at one academic medical center in 2023 and later disseminated across multiple academic medical centers in the CTSA Consortium in 2024. Participants completed pre- and post-workshop surveys assessing confidence across key skill areas and provided demographic data, including years of experience. A six-month follow-up survey evaluated longer-term outcomes for the 2023 participants. Paired and independent t-tests and regression models assessed changes over time, by cohort, and by subgroup.

A total of 92 individuals participated (39 in 2023 and 53 in 2024), with an average of 10.1 ± 7.97 years of experience. Confidence improved across all measured skill areas post-workshop but slightly declined at six-month follow-up, although it remained above pre-workshop baseline levels. The 2023 participants showed greater improvement in handling ethical dilemmas than the 2024 participants (p = 0.038). Satisfaction was high throughout both years, with no significant differences in format preference or recommendation rates. Qualitative feedback emphasized the workshop’s practical relevance and interactive format.

The effective dissemination of this workshop improved biostatisticians’ confidence in key communication and leadership skills across multiple clinical and translational research enterprises. While the training was well received, further research is needed to determine if sustaining gains over time requires a refresher course.

Interventions based on testing and communication training have been developed to reduce antibiotic prescribing in primary healthcare (PHC) for the treatment of acute lower respiratory infections (ALRTIs). However, research based on the experiences of PHC clinicians participating in ALTRIs interventions to reduce antibiotic prescribing in Barcelona is scanty.

This study aimed to explore the perceptions and experiences of clinicians (physicians and nurses) on an intervention to reduce antibiotic prescription in PHC in Barcelona (Spain). This intervention was a randomised controlled study (cRCT) based on three arms: 1) use of a C-reactive protein (CRP) rapid test; 2) enhanced communication skills; and 3) combination of CRP rapid test and enhanced communication skills. In addition, the study aimed to explore the impact of COVID-19 on the detection of ALRTIs.

This qualitative study used a socio-constructivist perspective. Sampling was purposive. Participants were selected based on age, sex, profession, intervention trial arm in which they participated, and the socioeconomic area of the PHC where they worked. They were recruited through the healthcare centres participating in the study. Nine participants (7 women and 2 men) participated in two focus groups, lasting 65–66 min, in September–October 2022. Framework analysis was used to analyse the data.

Three themes were identified: ‘(The intervention) gave us reassurance’: intervention experiences among health professionals. This theme includes accounts of clinicians’ satisfaction with the intervention, particularly with CRP testing to support clinical diagnoses; ‘We don’t have time in primary healthcare’: structural and community resources in healthcare services. This theme encompasses clinicians’ experiences on healthcare pressures and PHC organisational structures barriers to PHC interventions; and ‘I only did three CRP’: impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the intervention. The last theme focuses on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the intervention’s implementation.

CPR testing and promoting communication skills can be useful tools to support clinical decisions for ALRTIs. Structural barriers (e.g., healthcare pressures) and social inequities amongst service users were acknowledged as the main barriers for the implementation of ALRTIs interventions.

Integrating scientific research across multiple disciplines to advance breakthroughs is at the heart of clinical-translational science (CTS); among competencies that have been identified as essential for progress, skillful communication is critical. Few tools are available to address the social dynamics of the multidimensional diversity characteristics of CTS. We created the “Building a Diverse Biomedical Workforce Through Communication Across Difference (CAD)” workshop intervention. Based on principles of intercultural communication, CAD taught novel situationally-based communication skills to dyads of near-peer mentors and their undergraduate mentees. This study reports on the effectiveness of the operative mechanisms employed in CAD workshops for helping participants navigate highly diverse research environments.

Participant data were collected from multiple sources, including workshop artifacts as well as focus groups conducted post-workshop. Data were organized, individually coded, and then iteratively and collectively into pre-defined and emergent themes.

Responses indicated that the content and activities resonated strongly with participants and illuminated their understanding of challenges (both their own and others’) related to belonging, confidence, and connectedness to the research environment; several participants shared that they planned to use or had successfully used the skills. Focus group comments revealed that participants recognized the potential of the skills to include significant opportunities for non-instrumental interaction, contributing to a psychologically healthier workplace.

A brief intervention to develop communication skills across a variety of differences characteristic of clinical-translational settings improves communication between mentors and mentees and with peers and increases sense of belonging in the workplace, with potential benefits to wellbeing.

Caregivers are critical in advanced care planning (ACP) discussions, which are difficult but necessary to carry out patients’ goals of care. We developed and evaluated the feasibility and acceptability of a communication training to equip caregivers of patients with malignant brain tumors with skills to navigate ACP conversations.

Caregivers completed a 2-h virtual training addressing ACP Discussions with Your Loved One and ACP Discussions with the Medical Team. A pre-training assessment was completed at baseline and a training evaluation was completed one day post-training. A subset of participants completed semi-structured interviews 2 months post-training.

Of 15 caregivers recruited, 9 attended the training and 4 completed qualitative interviews. Post-training, 40% felt confident in discussing ACP with loved ones and 67% felt confident doing so with healthcare professionals; 100% reported feeling confident in using skills learned in the training to facilitate these conversations. Data from qualitative interviews highlighted additional benefits of the training in empathic communication skills and fostering social support.

Our communication skills training shows promise in supporting caregivers’ skills and confidence in engaging in ACP discussions with patients and healthcare providers. A future randomized controlled trial with a larger and more diverse caregiving sample is needed to determine training efficacy.

One of the issues that has increasingly become relevant to medical practice is the ability to communicate well with patients. Better communication results in better care for the patient, as well as greater satisfaction for the physician. For this reason, the aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of a communication skills training program for medical residents (MR).

Eighty-six MR underwent a 6-month training program in three phases: a 12-h theory and practice workshop, a period of real practice, and a 4-h workshop in which the most challenging scenarios were role played with an actress. In each phase (T0, T1, and T2), participants’ beliefs about their competence in caring for patients’ psychosocial aspects and their self-confidence in communication skills were assessed.

No differences were found between T0 and T1 in participants’ beliefs of self-competence in psychosocial care. However, this competence significantly improved after completion of the entire program. Only 7 of the 12 areas explored in communication skills significantly improved between T0 and T1. However, after T2 completion, significant improvements were observed in all 12 areas.

The research results highlight the usefulness and importance of training young doctors to foster their psychosocial approach to patient care and improve their confidence in their own communication skills. The results also show the appropriateness of the structure of the training: the key features of the programme were the follow-up of the participants in three phases over 6 months, and a focus on the needs of the residents and the resolution of difficult clinical cases, with the support of an actress. Therefore, the training presented in this study may become a guide for other trainings in other contexts with similar objectives.

To explore the lived experience of delivering or receiving news about an unborn or newborn child having a condition associated with a learning disability in order to inform the development of a training intervention for healthcare professionals. We refer to this news as different news.

How healthcare professionals deliver different news to parents affects the way they adjust to the situation, the wellbeing of their child and their ongoing engagement with services. This is the first study that examined the lived experience of delivering and receiving different news, in order to inform the development of training for healthcare professionals using the Theoretical Domains Framework version 2.

We conducted qualitative interviews with a purposive sample of 9 different parents with the lived experience of receiving different news and 12 healthcare professionals who delivered different news. It was through these descriptions of the lived experience that barriers and facilitators to effectively delivering different news were identified to inform the training programme. Data analysis was guided by Theoretical Domains Framework version 2 to identify these barriers and facilitators as well as the content of a training intervention.

Receiving different news had a significant impact on parents’ emotional and mental wellbeing. They remembered how professionals described their child, the quality of care and emotional support they received. The process had a significant impact on the parent–child relationship and the relationship between the family and healthcare professionals.

Delivering different news was challenging for some healthcare professionals due to lack of training. Future training informed by parents’ experiences should equip professionals to demonstrate empathy, compassion, provide a balanced description of conditions and make referrals for further care and support. This can minimise the negative psychological impact of the news, maximise psychological wellbeing of families and reduce the burden on primary care services.