Maharashtra University of Health Science (MUHS) has decided to start the communication skills project in medical colleges across the state, to teach doctors how to be more sensitive with patients and their relatives.
Maharashtra University of Health Science (MUHS) has decided to start the communication skills project in medical colleges across the state, to teach doctors how to be more sensitive with patients and their relatives.
Newly appointed vice-chancellor Dr Sanjay Jamkar of MUHS is set to focus on doctors’ communication skills and personality development. He said, “They are several incidents of clashes between relatives and doctors over care given to patients. In several cases, disputes have flared into full-scale riots, where doctors have been assaulted and hospital property damaged by relatives and supporters.
He added that from the next academic year it’s mandatory for colleges to have the communication project.
Dr Sanjay Oak, dean of KEM Hospital, said, “A similar project - Shidori - exists in our hospital where we coach students on the nuances of diplomatic communication while dealing with anxious relatives. In the last six to eight months, we have made some changes in this project and implemented it well. If the varsity wants to start this in all medical colleges, it is a welcome move.
Doctors For You (DFY) is a social organisation, which aims to provide efficient, effective and equitable heath care and health education to all. “This project should have started long ago; it’s a much-needed one for medical students. It’s difficult for a new doctor to break the news of a patient’s death to his or her relatives,” said Dr Ravikant Singh, president of DFY.
A senior doctor said that most of the time relatives complained that doctors don’t do enough to help the patient. Resident doctors have long working hours; they often work for 24 hours at a stretch.
“It is possible that a harried doctor will not be able to give proper attention to impatient relatives who ask the same questions repeatedly and demand quick services,” he said. “Sometimes, when a patient dies just a few hours after being admitted, the situation can become tense as relatives blame doctors. Doctors should be equipped to deal with situations like these.”
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