Strategies for teaching communication skills in the medical interview, when your agenda does not match the learner’s

If, after watching a consultation, roleplay or a video your agenda as the trainer does not match the learner’s, you have the following options:

1.  Once trust has been established in the one-to-one/group relationship, agree a contract that allows both the learner’s and trainer’s agenda to be on the table and to be subsequently addressed.

 2.  If the trainer’s agenda does not come up in the initial exploration of the learner’s agenda and preferred outcome :

·       Wait for the appropriate point to raise your concerns

·       Go into feelings during the initial exploration – “how did you feel that went”, rather than “how did that go”?

·       Raise your agenda in a straightforward manner, using descriptive feedback and asking permission