Investigating the Effects of a Short Narratology Education Module on Empathy and Patient-centred Communication in Early-stage Medical Students.

NCT07084077 | Completed DMC

• 1 other identifier: REC202405007
• Study Type: observational
• Target: 22
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Effective communication is a fundamental skill in clinical medicine; however, traditional approaches often fail to equip learners with an ability to authentically and empathically engage with the complexities of real patients' experiences. Narratology education has been proposed as a pedagogical framework for augmenting empathy and patient-centred communication in medical students. In April 2025, we undertook a mixed-methods pilot study to evaluate the impact of a one-week narratology education module on second-year undergraduate medical students at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI), Dublin. The module involved close reading, group viewings, facilitated small-group workshops, and whole-group discussions in response to narrative works by Irish writers and storytellers, followed by written personal reflections. At the outset and conclusion of the module, each student undertook a clinical history with a simulated patient (SP) portraying early-stage dementia. SPs assessed each student's empathy and communication using the CARE Measure.

Conditions

Empathy; Patient-centredness; Narrative Medicine

Keywords

Empathy; Patient-centred communication; narrative medicine; medical education

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

• Change in total Consultation and Relational Empathy (CARE) Measure score as assessed by Simulated Patients

  In the CARE Measure, ten items are rated on a five-point scale from 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent), with the total score being the sum of those ten items (maximum score 50, minimum score zero); in the event of missing or not applicable (N/A) ratings, the mean rating of available items was calculated and then multiplied by ten to estimate the total score.

  1 week

• Change in individual Consultation and Relational Empathy (CARE) Measure score items' scores as assessed by Simulated Patients

  In the CARE Measure, ten items are rated on a five-point scale from 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent), with the total score being the sum of those ten items (maximum score 50, minimum score zero); in the event of missing or not applicable (N/A) ratings, the mean rating of available items was calculated and then multiplied by ten to estimate the total score.

  1 week

Interventions

Narratology education module OTHER

At RCSI Dublin, mentioned by James Joyce in Dubliners, a one-week student-choice module Narrative Medicine: lessons from Irish writers and storytellers was offered to those in the second of our five-year undergraduate medical degree program, i.e., students were 18-months into the curriculum, had limited communication skills training, and no real-world clinical exposure. The module used close reading, group viewing, small-group workshops, and whole-group discussions to foster narrative competence. A medically-trained narratology-expert facilitated students' interrogation of classic and award-winning non-healthcare themed works by Irish writers and storytellers, i.e., directors and/or producers.

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)
• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Second-year medical students at RCSI Dublin

You may qualify if:

• Second-year medical students at RCSI Dublin Over 18 years of age Electing to take the student-choice module in Narrative Medicine

You may not qualify if:

• English not as a first language

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Connolly Hospital Blanchardstown: lead

Study Sites (1)

RCSI School of Medicine

Dublin, Dublin, D02 YN77, Ireland

Location

Related Publications (1)

• Alhaidari B, Mulhall C, Condron C, Shpigelman J, Jain D, Daly MJ. Investigating the effects of a short narratology module on empathy and patient-centred communication in early-stage medical students: an empirical mixed-methods pilot study. BMC Med Educ. 2025 Dec 2;26(1):15. doi: 10.1186/s12909-025-08264-7.

  PMID: 41331818 DERIVED

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Narrative Medicine

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Narration; Communication; Behavior

Study Design

• Study Type: observational
• Observational Model: COHORT
• Time Perspective: PROSPECTIVE
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Consultant Cardiologist, Senior Lecturer

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: July 17, 2025
• First Posted: July 24, 2025
• Study Start: April 2, 2025
• Primary Completion: April 30, 2025
• Study Completion: July 10, 2025
• Last Updated: August 7, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-08

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

IE (1)