Building Communication and Conflict Management Awareness in Surgical Education

A group of surgeons and a medical educator constructed a curriculum to strengthen communication and emotional intelligence skills in the surgical setting. The curriculum consisted of a small group discussion series occurring during medical students’ eight-week surgery clerkship. The curriculum targeted the following objectives: building team rapport, exploring self-management strategies in team communication, recognizing communication styles, diagnosing conflict, identifying opportunities in professional and personal development, and discussing professionalism in medicine. Students completed pre-post Likert style tests about their knowledge and understanding of the above-mentioned topics. Texas A&M University College of Medicine, Surgical Clerkship at Baylor Scott and White Medical Center, a level 1 trauma center, in Temple, TX. Twenty-four students in their third year of medical school completed the communication curriculum. Wilcoxon sign test was used to analyze the non-parametric data and multiple repeat tests required the significance level (p-Value) be adjusted to 0.003. Students showed significant increase in understanding of conflict management, their ability to communicate effectively, and their awareness of communication preferences (p < 0.001). In addition, they recognized better ways to engage with other students, residents, and staff on their rotation (p = 0.002) and felt more confident in their ability to handle feedback (p = 0.001). Open-ended responses on the post-test had overwhelmingly positive feedback with themes of awareness, psychological safety, and team rapport. Finally, students requested that the curriculum be taught longitudinally throughout their third-year clerkships. Our curriculum enabled students to improve their awareness of communication, conflict management, team dynamics, and professionalism. These important competencies will support students throughout their training and in their practice as future surgeons.