RxPG News XML Feed for RxPG News   Add RxPG News Headlines to My Yahoo!  

Medical Research Health Special Topics World
 
  Home
 
   Health
 Aging
 Asian Health
 Events
 Fitness
 Food & Nutrition
 Happiness
 Men's Health
 Mental Health
 Occupational Health
 Parenting
 Sleep Hygiene
 Women's Health
 Public Health
 
   Careers
 Dental
 Medical
  Australia
  ECFMG
  India
  United Kingdom
  United States
 Nursing
 
   DocIndia
 Overseas Indian Doctor
 Reservation Issue
 
   Healthcare
 Africa
 Australia
 Canada Healthcare
 China Healthcare
 India Healthcare
 New Zealand
 South Africa
 UK
 USA
 World Healthcare
 
   Latest Research
 Aging
 Alternative Medicine
 Anaethesia
 Biochemistry
 Biotechnology
 Cancer
 Cardiology
 Clinical Trials
 Cytology
 Dental
 Dermatology
 Embryology
 Endocrinology
 ENT
 Environment
 Epidemiology
 Gastroenterology
 Genetics
 Gynaecology
 Haematology
 Immunology
 Infectious Diseases
 Medicine
 Metabolism
 Microbiology
 Musculoskeletal
 Nephrology
 Neurosciences
 Obstetrics
 Ophthalmology
 Orthopedics
 Paediatrics
 Pathology
 Pharmacology
 Physiology
 Psychiatry
 Radiology
 Rheumatology
 Sports Medicine
 Surgery
 Toxicology
 Urology
 
   Medical News
 Awards & Prizes
 Epidemics
 Launch
 Opinion
 Professionals
 
   Special Topics
 Ethics
 Euthanasia
 Evolution
 Feature
 Odd Medical News
 Climate

Last Updated: May 23, 2007 - 12:55:26 PM
Medical Channel

subscribe to Medical newsletter
Careers : Medical

   EMAIL   |   PRINT
Factors in religious sensitivity for medical students
Dec 15, 2005 - 4:21:00 PM , Reviewed by: Ankush Vidyarthi
"Our study found that religious awareness training improves medical student interpersonal behavior, but the effect is moderated by gender"

Article options
 Email to a Friend
 Printer friendly version
 Medical channel RSS
 More Medical news
[RxPG] Can sensitivity to the role religion plays in a patient's life positively affect physician bedside manner and care of the patient? Yes, for female physicians in training; no, for male physicians in training, according to a research letter published in the December issue of the Southern Medical Journal.

"Research has shown that patients want their physicians to be aware of their religious beliefs, values, and needs and to discuss religious issues with them, especially if they are preparing for death. At the same time, studies have documented physician avoidance of religious discussions due to discomfort and lack of training," said senior author Douglas Miller, M.D., professor of medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine. "Other research suggests that medical students exposed to religion during medical training display more empathy and positive attitudes toward religion in the clinic.

"Our study found that religious awareness training improves medical student interpersonal behavior, but the effect is moderated by gender," said Dr. Miller, who also is a research scientist at the Regenstrief Institute, Inc. and the Indiana University Center for Aging Research.

Dr. Miller and co-authors John T. Chibnall, Ph.D., and Mary Ann Cook, Ph.D., report that female medical students who received religious awareness training in addition to communications training demonstrated superior interpersonal skills relative to those who received communications training only. No similar effect was found in male medical students.

The findings were published in a research letter rather than as a research study due to the preliminary nature of the data and the small sample size.

Twelve medical students received patient supportiveness training and 15 medical students received supportiveness training plus religious awareness training. The study hypotheses and difference in training were not explained to the students, and they were unaware that the subsequent simulated patient interaction was related at all to religious awareness training.

HOPE, a teaching methodology that integrates spiritual assessment into patient interviews, was used to train the future physicians in spiritual and religious sensitivity. HOPE training is designed to assist physicians in comprehending the effects of a patient's spiritual and religious beliefs on medical care and end-of-life issues (hope, organized religion, personal spirituality, and effects on medical care).

The researchers want to expand the research to determine why the impact of training designed to the support patients' spiritual and religious needs differs in male and female medical students.

"Is this gender disparity related to cultural norms, the same norms that look down upon a male who cries in public? Or are women better communicators? Also, since both the communications trainer and the simulated patient were female, could the gender of these professionals have affected the outcome? We don't know the answers to these questions, but we want to find out," said Dr. Miller. "We are trying to train students to be nonjudgmental and supportive physicians. Increased spiritual and religious sensitivity may enable them to better understand and thus better care for their patients throughout their lives, especially when facing end-of-life decisions."




Publication: December issue of the Southern Medical Journal
On the web: www.iu.edu 

Related Medical News
MTAS will cause irreparable harm to 10,000 junior doctors
BMA welcomes abandonment of MTAS
The Royal College of Psychiatrists welcomes the Government’s decision to abandon the MTAS process
BMA Junior doctors Committee left the MTAS review group in protest
Cochrane Library Now Available Across India
Review says junior doctors should get guaranteed interviews
The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges say on MTAS
Royal College Concerned About Impact of MTAS on Mental Health of Trainee Doctors
BMA calls for delay to MTAS recruitment system
BMA responds to High Court ruling on visa restrictions for overseas doctors

Subscribe to Medical Newsletter
E-mail Address:

 Additional information about the news article
Dr. Chibnall is from the Department of Psychiatry at Saint Louis University School of Medicine; Dr. Cook is from JVC Radiology and Medical Analysis LLC, both of St. Louis, Mo. This study was supported by the Lutheran Foundation, and the Marchetti Jesuit Endowment at Saint Louis University.
 Feedback
For any corrections of factual information, to contact the editors or to send any medical news or health news press releases, use feedback form

Top of Page

 
© All rights reserved 2004 onwards by RxPG Medical Solutions Private Limited
Contact Us