Staff’s Knowledge and Self-Confidence in Difficult Communication: Evaluation of a Short Experiential-Based Training Program

Background: Most of the communication training programs developed over the past two decades were monodisciplinary, relied on traditional teaching methods, and targeted the hospital context. Objectives: The aim of this study is to assess the impact of a short, interdisciplinary, experiential-based communication program (Teach-to-Communicate program) targeted at nursing home (NH) personnel with regard to short-term, staff-related outcomes. Methods: This study is part of a larger quality improvement project based on a pre–post single-arm intervention design. We focused on a 6 h residential program involving 30 participants with different scopes of practice working in an NH. Traditional and experiential learning methods were used, including lectures, small group discussions, brainstorming sessions, videos on successful and failed communication, role play, and storytelling based on real cases. The primary outcome was the acquired knowledge of communication strategies and protocols (pre- and post-test quiz). Secondary outcomes were self-reported knowledge, preparedness, confidence, and satisfaction with training (5-point Likert questions). Results: A statistically significant improvement in acquired knowledge with a large size effect (0.7, p < 0.001) was observed. Self-reported preparedness and confidence ameliorated for all measured communication skills and topics, with the highest effect size registered for self-reported preparedness and confidence in engaging in difficult communication (both 0.7, p < 0.001). Participants were highly satisfied with the training, and particularly with the use of video cases (mean 4.6, SD 0.6) and the relevance to clinical practice (mean 4.7, SD 0.5). Conclusions: The Teach-to-Communicate program holds promise for improving knowledge and self-confidence regarding difficult communication among NH staff, and highlights the utility of video cases in communication skills training.