The University of Calgary's Medical
Communication Assessment Program (MCAP), which focuses
on developing the communication skills of immigrant
medical graduates (IMGs), is now in its second year
and looks to be a major success.
The 16-week course at the University
of Calgary enrols IMGs who have all passed the MCCEE
and the MCCQE1 exams, and are all Canadian citizens
or permanent residents. The course helps them overcome
cultural, social and linguistic barriers and make it
through the next round of exams.
David Watt, PhD, of the school's
Education department, began a pilot program last year
with 24 doctors. This year's MCAP class has 40. "By
refining their ability to relate, they show the depth
of their clinical skills," says Dr Watt. "These doctors
can then be judged [within the Canadian testing process]
with greater accuracy."
LEARNING
LANGUAGE
The doctors spend the first eight weeks of the program
in classes, learning the skills necessary to shift to
a patient-centred model of care. Every week they perform
case assessments with actors while medical and linguistic
evaluators look on. They learn the importance of gestures,
eye contact and body language in establishing rapport
with a patient.
Dr Shaheen Raza, originally from
Pakistan, is learning first-hand how to navigate the
unknown terrain of patient-centred care in her eight-week
practicum - the second stage of the MCAP -- at the Tom
Baker Cancer Centre in Calgary.
"Here, we tell everything about
the condition to the patient," Dr Raza says. This is
not always the case in Pakistan - depending on the patient's
level of education, a family member might instead be
consulted.
Dr Watt wants to see more IMGs
follow Dr Raza's example: "If the clinical skills are
there, we should get the training for them to expose
those skills."
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