As a GI fellow, how will you explain a complex gastrointestinal diagnosis, procedure, or other medical term to a patient using verbal instructions?
Your team of interviewers wants a full team of Gastroenterology Fellows who can be world-class educators. In your later years of fellowship training, you will be responsible for educating patients and junior residents. A question like this allows your interviewers to see how you would handle educating a patient on a complex diagnosis or procedure using only verbal dialogue.
"While most of the general public is getting very educated on their primary care, living healthier and making wiser choices, specialty care like gastroenterology continues to be a dark subject for most patients. I see it as my job to help patients understand what we as physicians are looking for during procedures and what a final diagnosis means in terms they can understand. In the end, ensuring that the patient understands the root cause and treatment moving forward is what leads to the most successful outcomes. During my residency training, I took a simplistic and step-by-step approach to the patient and their family. I would stop along the way and ask them to repeat what I'm teaching them and use language and terms that best suit their educational level."
Healthcare is increasingly complex, so it makes sense that the instructions can be as well. This question provides a chance to showcase your talent to take a complicated idea and explain it without losing the integrity and dumbing it down. Explain to your interviewers your step-by-step approach to ensure that the complicated subject is understood by your audience. If you have an example of a time you did just this during your residency training, now is a great time to bring that up.
Community answers are written by other candidates practicing this set. Reading how others frame the same question is one of the fastest ways to sharpen your own.
Anonymous Answer
During my residency training, I took a simplistic and step-by-step approach to the patient and their family. I would stop along the way and ask them to repeat what I'm teaching them and use language and terms that best suit their educational level.
Marcie's Feedback
Nice! Using simple terms and a step-by-step approach, in addition to asking the patient to repeat back what they've learned, it's definitely possible to convey complex medical concepts. Can you give the interviewer a specific example of a time when you did this? Be detailed about the medical concept you had to explain and exactly how you did that successfully. Great job!
Anonymous Answer
Although we are seeing an increase in knowledge and awareness of health by the general public, it’s important to use simple language and not complex medical terms when communicating diagnosis or treatment to a patient. I would start by asking the patient about his understanding of illness/diagnosis to get an estimate of his comprehension. Then using simple terms I would begin to explain and would pause intermittently to allow time for his comprehension and give him a chance to ask questions.
Jaymie's Feedback
These are fantastic techniques to ensure patients understand the information you're communicating.
Anonymous Answer
I will get a first-hand understanding of the patient's symptoms, presumed diagnosis, and indication for the procedure. I will then explain to them what instruments will we be using and what the texture. Stating a flexible tube with a camera on the top generally is less anxiety-provoking. Also describing findings like erythema, polyp as redness, and a lump in the colon is helpful. Ending the conversation with what will the procedure or diagnosis mean for the patient is important and helps them understand what to expect and what not to and especially when to contact the medical team is very important.
Jaymie's Feedback
Be sure to include explaining things in simple terms to help with patient comprehension and understanding. It sounds like you have a solid approach for sharing each step of the process with the patient so they know what to expect and have the opportunity to ask questions. Good job!
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