Facilitating Rapport Through Real Patient Encounters in Health Care Professional Education

“Facilitating Rapport through Real Patient Encounters in Health Care
Professional Education”
Introduction
Establishing rapport is central to any health care professional-patient encounter.

Developing a positive relationship with a patient enables the health care practitioner to elicit
pertinent information and make informed clinical decisions about their treatment. This
consequently leads to greater patient adherence, satisfaction and ultimately outcomes. As
interpersonal communication and building patient rapport is integral to patient care it is
imperative that the teaching of these skills be included in undergraduate and continuing
health care professional education. The objective of this narrative review was to analyse the
literature pertaining to health care professionals learning and developing interpersonal
communication and rapport building skills through encounters with ‘real patients.
Establishing rapport is central to any

health
professional-patient encounter (1).
O’Toole
defines rapport as the development
of a
therapeutic relationship based on
mutual
understanding (respect, empathy and
trust)(2).
Developing a positive relationship
with a patient
in the literature surrounding
the terminology used to describe
patient
involvement in health care
professional education.
Other terms frequently used include
cons
health
O’Toole
of a
mutual
trust)(2).
with a patient
health
O’Toole
of a
mutual
trust)(2).
with a patient
health
O’Toole
of a
mutual
trust)(2).
with a patient
health
O’Toole
of a
mutual
trust)(2).
with a pat
Research Findings
The aim of this review was to determine the value of learning and developing
interpersonal communication and rapport building skills in health care professionals through
encounters with ‘real patients. Many studies examined the impact of ‘real patients’ in health
care professional education however only a small number were identified that dealt
specifically with interpersonal communication and rapport building skills. The resultant
benefits of involving ‘real patients’ in communication skills training for health care personnel
will be discussed below. Any conclusions drawn from this review however must remain
preliminary until such time as more high-level research becomes available. Nevertheless, a
number of key themes emerged from the results which warrant further discussion. A total of
6549 articles were identified from the initial search. Following the application of inclusion
and exlusion criteria seven articles were included in this review. A synthesis and subsequent
examination of the extracted data revealed positive results in regard to incorporating ‘real
patients’ into interpersonal communication skills and practitioner-patient relationship
teaching and learning. Some studies measured actual improvement in behaviour and skills
whilst others offered self-reported data on participant perceptions of their skills.
Conclusion
Training interventions involving ‘real patients’, that are designed to foster interpersonal
communication, and rapport building are achievable and beneficial for student and practicing
health care professionals. This review indicates that students benefit from the authentic nature
of interactions and the experience of forming meaningful relationships with patients. They
reported improved comfort, confidence, awareness, knowledge, motivation and value in the
learning experience. Interventions with ‘real patients’ designed to enhance communication
also appear to be best positioned early in education and training where these skills can be
developed in isolation from clinical reasoning and decision-making skills which in the novice
detracts from the ability to build relationships.
Analysis
This review indicates that patient interaction in health care professional education has
an important role to play for novice and practicing professionals alike. The value appears to
lie in the authentic nature of the relationships formed with ‘real patients. These valuable
experiential learning opportunities allow health care professionals to learn from and with
patients in relevant contexts. The nature and extent of involvement can vary from on-off
minimal interaction to long term partnerships with educators however careful planning and
execution must occur to ensure ethical and safety considerations are met.
Reference
Arnold EC, Boggs KKU. Interpersonal Relationship: Professional Communication Skills For
Nurses. Missouri USA: Saunders; 2010
Egnew TR, Wilson HJ. Faculty and

medical
students’ perceptions of teaching and
learning
about the doctor–patient relationship.
Patient
Educ Couns. 2010;79(2):199-206
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medical
learning
Patient
Educ Couns. 2010;79(2):199-206
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learning
Patient
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Egnew TR, Wilson HJ. Faculty and Medical students’ perceptions of teaching and learning
about the doctor-patient relationship. Patient Educ Couns. 2010;79 (2):199-206.
Del Canale S, Louis DZ, Maio V, Wang X, Rossi G, Hojat M, et al. The relationship between
physician empathy and disease complications: an empirical study of primary care physicians
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Norfolk T, Birdi K, Walsh D. (2007) The role of empathy in establishing rapport in the
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Rosenzwelg S. Emergency rapport. J Emerg Med. 1993;11(6):775-8. 6. Arnold EC, Boggs
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Missouri USA: Saunders

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“Facilitating Rapport through Real Patient Encounters in Health Care

Establishing rapport is central to any health care professional-patient encounter.

Establishing rapport is central to any

Egnew TR, Wilson HJ. Faculty and

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