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Master of Public Health

Virtual student-transplant patient interactions empower patients and enhance student transplantation knowledge

AUTHORS

Coe TM , Chirban AM , McBroom TJ , Cloonan DJ , Brownlee SA , Moses J , Yeh H , Petrusa E , Saillant N , Dageforde LA , . American journal of surgery. 2021 9 30; ().

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: There is variation in exposure to transplantation in undergraduate medical education. We created a program pairing medical students with transplant patients for semi-structured, virtual encounters and studied the impact on both students and patients using qualitative content analysis.

METHODS: Fifty medical students were paired with transplant recipients and donors for non-medical virtual encounters. Separate focus groups were conducted, deidentified, and analyzed using a constant comparative method.

RESULTS: Three themes related to the student experience emerged: transplant-related relationships, a deeper understanding of the patient’s journey to transplant, and alterations of their personal view of organ donation and transplantation. Three themes emerged from the patient’s experiences: the benefits of conversations, the patient as a teacher, and spreading the message of organ donation and transplantation.

CONCLUSIONS: This novel program demonstrates that virtual student-patient interactions are a useful approach to engage patients and a unique way to teach medical students about transplantation and donation.

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