Communication skills education at Zagreb University School of Medicine

Abstract:

In recent years, the need for having medical education based on learning outcomes has become even more obvious. In order to provide good medical practice, medical students should acquire not only specific competencies required for medical professionals, but also generic competencies, with communication skills playing an exceptionally important role. In that respect, a recently introduced longitudinal undergraduate course in Medical Propaedeutics, taught at the Zagreb University School of Medicine, will include teaching communication skills within clinical courses throughout the six-year education programme. Within the postgraduate specialist training programmes, a course on generic competencies including communication skills is about to be introduced. Teachers will be trained to teach and assess communication skills of both undergraduate and postgraduate students

Key words:
communication; education, medical, graduate; education, medical, undergraduate; physicians; teaching