Thriving in a busy practice: physician-patient communication training.

BACKGROUND Despite growing concern about the potential impact of managed care on the physician-patient relationship, efforts to enhance the quality of communication between practicing clinicians and their patients have been limited. OBJECTIVE To determine the effectiveness of a 1-day educational workshop. DESIGN Clinician self-assessment of interviewing skills measured immediately before and 3 months after the workshop. SETTING The Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program. PARTICIPANTS Practicing clinicians (n = 1384) in 22 workshops during a 5-year period. Nine hundred eleven participants (66% response rate) completed self-assessment questionnaires 3 months after the workshop. RESULTS Self-assessed interviewing skills improved in all items 3 months after the workshop (P < 0.05). Clinicians also reported a decline in the proportion of visits that they characterized as frustrating. CONCLUSION A 1-day educational intervention for large groups of practicing clinicians can improve confidence in medical interviewing skills and the ability to handle difficult encounters.