Improving health care professionals' feedback on communication skills: development of an on-line resource.

OBJECTIVE: This project aimed to develop an open-access on-line resource to assist health care professionals in providing effective feedback on patient-centered clinical and communication skills. The collaborative nature of the development of this learning resource is outlined and evaluation of its use is discussed. METHODS: An inter-professional team of teaching staff from two London Universities employed a researcher to interview experienced clinical and academic health care professionals and gather examples of difficult feedback situations. Material was used to develop short video clips illustrating some common challenges in giving feedback on clinical and communication skills. Initial evaluation following use of the scenarios in workshops was undertaken by means of a "talking wall" technique. RESULTS: Evaluation indicated that the resource enhanced the learning experience by providing realistic and challenging scenarios to focus discussion. CONCLUSION: Inter-professional working and piloting the use of the video scenarios in workshops enabled the improvement and refinement of an on-line staff development resource on feedback. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The on-line resource is now available as an open access learning tool, with eight scenarios and guidelines for providing effective feedback in the academic or clinical setting. It can be used for self-study or as part of a group training session.