Confessions of a Reluctant Caregiver Palliative Educational Program: Using Readers’ Theater to Teach End-of-Life Communication in Undergraduate Medical Education

ABSTRACT

End-of-life care can be stressful for patients, caregivers, and providers. Caregivers often experience high levels of burden from caregiving duties such as performing medical tasks, communicating with providers, and making decisions. Similarly, many physicians feel unprepared to provide end-of-life care or communicate with patients and families about sensitive issues associated with death and dying. Physicians often attribute their lack of preparation to inadequate training in medical school. Previous research suggests that drama-based learning opportunities are valuable supplements to existing end-of-life curricula. The current study evaluates the success of the Confessions of a Reluctant Caregiver Palliative Educational Program – a drama-based educational program that depicts patient and caregiver experiences. A total of 477 osteopathic medical students participated in the program, which includes viewing a play, engaging in a facilitated post-performance talkback session, and completing an evaluation survey. The results suggest the program is a valuable learning experience that is positively associated with important facets of experiential learning using narratives such as perceived realism, increased reflection, strong emotions, and increased comfort with difficult behaviors. The program offers a safe environment for medical students to identify, understand, and process the sensitive and complex issues associated with end-of-life care. Moreover, the play offers insight into the often-overlooked experiences of family caregivers who are at risk of experiencing high caregiver burden while managing health-related communication and decision-making.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the Ohio University Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs for their service in survey development and as an external evaluator of the scope and impact of the Confessions of a Reluctant Caregiver Palliative Educational Program.

Notes

1. Please contact Merri Biechler, MFA at [email protected] if you are interested in offering a staged reading of the Confessions of a Reluctant Caregiver at your institution.

Additional information

Funding

Portion of this study was supported in part by the American Cancer Society, Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine, and Ohio University Trisolini Graduate Fellowship.