Research Article


DOI :10.26650/CONNECTIST2021-0088   IUP :10.26650/CONNECTIST2021-0088    Full Text (PDF)

The Role of Community-based Health Practice on the Improvement of Healthcare Students’ Communication, Empathy and Perception of the Elderly: A Qualitative Study at Izmir University of Economics

Zeynep AksoyÖzden GökdemirMakbule İlgi Şemin

Interpersonal communication involving empathy is of great importance in therapeutic relationships in healthcare. To equip medical/healthcare students with interpersonal communication skills, community-based health education provides real-life contexts in which they engage with the community as part of the curriculum. A community-based health practice (CBHP) was implemented at Izmir University of Economics (IUE) to improve students’ communication, empathy and perception towards the elderly. Within an interdisciplinary collaboration among the medicine, nursing, elderly-care and physiotherapy programs, a total of 111 students participated in the project. This study aimed to evaluate the role of the CBHP on students’ communication, empathy and perception of the elderly. Taking a qualitative approach, focus group interviews were organized with students (n=22). Descriptive analysis of the qualitative data revealed that students witnessed the loneliness of elderly individuals, their physical and psychosocial needs, which resulted in a high degree of empathy. Furthermore, the study also aimed to gain insights from elderly participants via in-depth interviews (n=9). Results demonstrated that the participants felt valued and useful during the communication processes with the students. In conclusion, CBHP contributed to students’ perceptions and empathy towards the elderly; meanwhile the elderly individuals were satisfied with the interest of the medical, nursing and healthcare students.

DOI :10.26650/CONNECTIST2021-0088   IUP :10.26650/CONNECTIST2021-0088    Full Text (PDF)

Sağlık Öğrencilerinin İletişim, Empati ve Yaşlı Algısının Geliştirilmesinde Toplum Temelli Sağlık Uygulamasının Rolü: İzmir Ekonomi Üniversitesi’nde Nitel Bir Çalışma

Zeynep AksoyÖzden GökdemirMakbule İlgi Şemin

Empati içeren kişiler arası iletişim, sağlık hizmetlerindeki terapötik ilişkilerde büyük önem taşımaktadır. Tıp/sağlık öğrencilerine kişiler arası iletişim becerileri kazandırmak için toplum temelli sağlık eğitimi müfredatın bir parçası olarak toplulukla etkileşime girdikleri gerçek yaşam bağlamları sağlamaktadır. Öğrencilerin iletişim, empati ve yaşlılara karşı algılarını geliştirmek için İzmir Ekonomi Üniversitesi’nde (İEU) toplum temelli bir sağlık uygulaması gerçekleştirilmiştir. Tıp, hemşirelik, yaşlı bakımı ve fizyoterapi programları arasında disiplinler arası bir iş birliği içinde, toplam 111 öğrenci projeye katılmıştır. Bu çalışma, toplum temelli sağlık uygulamasının öğrencilerin iletişimi, empatisi ve yaşlı algısı üzerindeki rolünü değerlendirmeyi amaçlamıştır. Niteliksel yaklaşım ile öğrenciler ile odak grup görüşmeleri gerçekleştirilmiştir (n=22). Niteliksel verinin betimsel analizi, öğrencilerin, yaşlı bireylerin yalnızlığına, fiziksel ve psikososyal gereksinimlerine yakından tanıklık etmelerinin yüksek düzeyde empatiye yol açtığını ortaya koymaktadır. Ayrıca çalışmada yaşlı katılımcılardan yüz yüze görüşmeler yoluyla içgörü elde edilmesi amaçlanmıştır (n=9). Araştırma sonuçları katılımcıların öğrenciler ile iletişim süreçleri esnasında değerli ve faydalı hissettiklerini göstermektedir. Sonuç olarak, toplum temelli sağlık uygulaması öğrencilerin yaşlı algısına ve empatisine katkı sağlamış, aynı zamanda yaşlı bireyler tıp, hemşirelik ve sağlık hizmetleri öğrencilerinin gösterdikleri ilgiden memnun kalmışlardır.


PDF View

References

  • Bahar-Özvarış, Ş. (2007). Topluma Dayalı Tıp Eğitimi (Community-based Health Education). Toplum Hekimliği Bülteni, 26(3), 1-6. google scholar
  • Boyce, C., & Neale, P. (2006). Conducting in-depth interviews: A guide for designing and conducting in-depth interviews for evaluation input. Watertown, MA: Pathfinder International. google scholar
  • Boyer, E. L. (1990). Scholarship reconsidered: Priorities of the professoriate. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. google scholar
  • Buller, M. K., & Buller, D. B. (1987). Physicians’ communication style and patient satisfaction. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 28, 375-388. google scholar
  • Burnard, P., Gill, P., Stewart, K., Treasure, E., & Chadwick, B. (2008). Analysing and presenting qualitative data. British Dental Journal, 204(8), 429-432. google scholar
  • Buttery, C. M., & Moser, D. L. (1980). A combined family and community medicine clerkship. Journal of Family Practice, 11(2), 237-244. google scholar
  • Cevizci, S., Uluocak, S., Aslan, C., Gökulu, G., Bilir, O., & Bakar, C. (2015). Prevalence of falls and associated risk factors among aged population: community based cross-sectional study from Turkey. Central European Journal of Public Health, 23(3), 233. google scholar
  • Chasteen, A. L., & Pratt, J. (1999). The effect of age-related stereotypes on response initiation and execution. The Journal of General Psychology, 126(1), 17-36. google scholar
  • Chasteen, A. L., Schwarz, N., & Park, D. C. (2002). The activation of aging stereotypes in younger and older adults. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 57(6), 540-547. google scholar
  • Chen, D., Lew, R., Hershman, W., & Orlander, J. (2007). A cross-sectional measurement of medical student empathy. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 22(10), 1434-1438. google scholar
  • Clever, S. L., Jin, L., Levinson, W., & Meltzer, D. O. (2008). Does doctor-patient communication affect patient satisfaction with hospital care? Results of an analysis with a novel instrumental variable. Health Services Research, 43(5p1), 1505-1519. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-6773.2008.00849.x google scholar
  • Corson, D. (1998). Community-based education for indigenous cultures. Language Culture and Curriculum, 11(3), 238-249. https://doi.org/10.1080/07908319808666555 google scholar
  • Çalışkan, D., Öncu, B., Köse, K., Ocaktan, M. E., & Özdemir, O. (2007). Depression scores and associated factors in pregnant and non-pregnant women: a community-based study in Turkey. Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics & Gynecology, 28(4), 195-200. https://doi.org/10.1080/01674820701450649 google scholar
  • Finkelstein, A., Carmel, S., & Bachner, Y. G. (2017). Physicians’ communication styles as correlates of elderly cancer patients’ satisfaction with their doctors. European Journal of Cancer Care, 26(1), e12399. google scholar
  • Gholamzadeh, S., Khastavaneh, M., Khademian, Z., & Ghadakpour, S. (2018). The effects of empathy skills training on nursing students’ empathy and attitudes toward elderly people. BMC Medical Education, 18(1), 1-7. google scholar
  • Hale, N. M. (1998). Effects of age and interpersonal contact on stereotyping of the elderly. Current Psychology, 17(1), 28-38. google scholar
  • Hojat, M., DeSantis, J., & Gonnella, J. S. (2017). Patient perceptions of clinician’s empathy: measurement and psychometrics. Journal of Patient Experience, 4(2), 78-83. google scholar
  • Hummert, M. L. (1990). Multiple stereotypes of elderly and young adults: A comparison of structure and evaluations. Psychology and Aging, 5(2), 182-193. https://doi.org/10.1037/0882-7974.5.2.182 google scholar
  • Hunt, J. B., Bonham, C., & Jones, L. (2011). Understanding the goals of service learning and community-based medical education: a systematic review. Academic Medicine, 86(2), 246-251. google scholar
  • Holmen, K., & Furukawa, H. (2002). Loneliness, health and social network among elderly people—a follow-up study. Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics, 35(3), 261-274. google scholar
  • İstatistiklerle yaşlılar, (2018). Republic of Turkey Ministry of Health. Retrieved from hastaliklar/Yasli_Sagligi/ raporlar_istatistikler/TUIK_Yasli_Istatistik _2018.pdf google scholar
  • Kelly, L., Walters, L., & Rosenthal, D. (2014). Community-based medical education: Is success a result of meaningful personal learning experiences?. Education for Health, 27(1), 47-50. google scholar
  • Kharicha, K., Iliffe, S., Manthorpe, J., Chew-Graham, C. A., Cattan, M., Goodman, C., ... & Walters, K. (2017). What do older people experiencing loneliness think about primary care or community based interventions to reduce loneliness? A qualitative study in E ngland. Health & Social Care in the Community, 25(6), 1733-1742. google scholar
  • Kitzinger, J. (1995). Qualitative research: introducing focus groups. Bmj, 311(7000), 299-302. google scholar
  • Maguire, P., & Pitceathly, C. (2002). Key communication skills and how to acquire them. Bmj, 325(7366), 697-700. google scholar
  • Magzoub, M. E. M., & Schmidt, H. G. (2000). A taxonomy of community-based medical education. Academic Medicine, 75(7), 699-707. google scholar
  • McLafferty, I. (2004). Focus group interviews as a data collecting strategy. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 48(2), 187-194. google scholar
  • Mooney, L. A., & Edwards, B. (2001). Experiential learning in sociology: Service learning and other community-based learning initiatives. Teaching Sociology, 29(2), 181-194. google scholar
  • 2017 National Population Projections Tables: Main Serries. US Census Bureau. Retrieved from https://www. census.gov/data/tables/2017/demo/popproj/2017-summarytables.html google scholar
  • Olson, C. J. (2003). A curriculum module enhances students’ gerontological practice-related knowledge and attitudes. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 38(4), 85-102. google scholar
  • Overview of the UK population: August 2019. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved from https://www.ons.gov. uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/articles/ overviewoftheukpopulation/august2019#the-uks-population-is ageing google scholar
  • Pettigrew, T. F. (1998). Intergroup contact theory. Annual Review of Psychology, 49(1), 65-85. google scholar
  • Pohl, C. J., Malin, S., & Kennell, L. (2014). Reinventing the home visit for undergraduate nursing students. Journal of Nursing Education, 53(12), 696-698. google scholar
  • Prihanti, G. (2017). The development of community based education (cbe) model’s to support the achievement of empathy competence: First year of medical students. J Soc Sci Hum, 25(S), 97-106. google scholar
  • Schwartz, K, Joseph P. Simmons, L. (2001). Contact quality and attitudes toward the elderly. Educational Gerontology, 27(2), 127-137. google scholar
  • Söderhamn, O., Lindencrona, C., & Gustavsson, S. M. (2001). Attitudes toward older people among nursing students and registered nurses in Sweden. Nurse Education Today, 21(3), 225-229. google scholar
  • Stacy, R., & Spencer, J. (1999). Patients as teachers: a qualitative study of patients’ views on their role in a community-based undergraduate project. Medical Education, 33(9), 688-694. google scholar
  • Stewart, M. A. (1995). Effective physician-patient communication and health outcomes: a review. CMAJ: Canadian Medical Association Journal, 152(9), 1423-1433. google scholar
  • Stueber, K. (2019). Empathy. In E. N. Zalta (Ed.). International Encyclopedia of Ethics. Retrieved from https://plato. stanford.edu/archives/fall2019/entries/empathy/ google scholar
  • Sundler, A. J., Lindberg, E., Nilsson, C., & Palmer, L. (2019). Qualitative thematic analysis based on descriptive phenomenology. Nursing Open, 6(3), 733-739. google scholar
  • Şimşek, H., Doğanay, S., Budak, R., & Uçku, R. (2014). Relationship of socioeconomic status with health behaviors and self-perceived health in the elderly: A community-based study, Turkey. Geriatrics & Gerontology International, 14(4), 960-968. google scholar
  • The Edinburg Declaration (August 12, 1988). World Federation for Medical Education. Retrieved from https:// wfme.org/download/the edinburgh-declaration/ google scholar
  • Turan, J. M., & Say, L. (2003). Community-based antenatal education in Istanbul, Turkey: Effects on health behaviours. Health Policy and Planning, 18(4), 391-398. google scholar
  • Yang, G., Kong, L., Zhao, W., Wan, X., Zhai, Y., Chen, L. C., & Koplan, J. P. (2008). Emergence of chronic non-communicable diseases in China. The Lancet, 372(9650), 1697-1705. google scholar
  • Wade, D. T. (2009). Holistic health care—what is it, and how can we achieve it?. In Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre’s google scholar
  • Annual General Meeting, Oxford, UK. Retrieved from https:// pdfs.semanticscholar.org/80af/ edfca2ffe3c96054aac6a85cf940a9c63a56.pdf google scholar

Citations

Copy and paste a formatted citation or use one of the options to export in your chosen format


EXPORT



APA

Aksoy, Z., Gökdemir, Ö., & Şemin, M.İ. (2021). The Role of Community-based Health Practice on the Improvement of Healthcare Students’ Communication, Empathy and Perception of the Elderly: A Qualitative Study at Izmir University of Economics. Connectist: Istanbul University Journal of Communication Sciences, 0(61), 33-51. https://doi.org/10.26650/CONNECTIST2021-0088


AMA

Aksoy Z, Gökdemir Ö, Şemin M İ. The Role of Community-based Health Practice on the Improvement of Healthcare Students’ Communication, Empathy and Perception of the Elderly: A Qualitative Study at Izmir University of Economics. Connectist: Istanbul University Journal of Communication Sciences. 2021;0(61):33-51. https://doi.org/10.26650/CONNECTIST2021-0088


ABNT

Aksoy, Z.; Gökdemir, Ö.; Şemin, M.İ. The Role of Community-based Health Practice on the Improvement of Healthcare Students’ Communication, Empathy and Perception of the Elderly: A Qualitative Study at Izmir University of Economics. Connectist: Istanbul University Journal of Communication Sciences, [Publisher Location], v. 0, n. 61, p. 33-51, 2021.


Chicago: Author-Date Style

Aksoy, Zeynep, and Özden Gökdemir and Makbule İlgi Şemin. 2021. “The Role of Community-based Health Practice on the Improvement of Healthcare Students’ Communication, Empathy and Perception of the Elderly: A Qualitative Study at Izmir University of Economics.” Connectist: Istanbul University Journal of Communication Sciences 0, no. 61: 33-51. https://doi.org/10.26650/CONNECTIST2021-0088


Chicago: Humanities Style

Aksoy, Zeynep, and Özden Gökdemir and Makbule İlgi Şemin. The Role of Community-based Health Practice on the Improvement of Healthcare Students’ Communication, Empathy and Perception of the Elderly: A Qualitative Study at Izmir University of Economics.” Connectist: Istanbul University Journal of Communication Sciences 0, no. 61 (Apr. 2024): 33-51. https://doi.org/10.26650/CONNECTIST2021-0088


Harvard: Australian Style

Aksoy, Z & Gökdemir, Ö & Şemin, Mİ 2021, 'The Role of Community-based Health Practice on the Improvement of Healthcare Students’ Communication, Empathy and Perception of the Elderly: A Qualitative Study at Izmir University of Economics', Connectist: Istanbul University Journal of Communication Sciences, vol. 0, no. 61, pp. 33-51, viewed 20 Apr. 2024, https://doi.org/10.26650/CONNECTIST2021-0088


Harvard: Author-Date Style

Aksoy, Z. and Gökdemir, Ö. and Şemin, M.İ. (2021) ‘The Role of Community-based Health Practice on the Improvement of Healthcare Students’ Communication, Empathy and Perception of the Elderly: A Qualitative Study at Izmir University of Economics’, Connectist: Istanbul University Journal of Communication Sciences, 0(61), pp. 33-51. https://doi.org/10.26650/CONNECTIST2021-0088 (20 Apr. 2024).


MLA

Aksoy, Zeynep, and Özden Gökdemir and Makbule İlgi Şemin. The Role of Community-based Health Practice on the Improvement of Healthcare Students’ Communication, Empathy and Perception of the Elderly: A Qualitative Study at Izmir University of Economics.” Connectist: Istanbul University Journal of Communication Sciences, vol. 0, no. 61, 2021, pp. 33-51. [Database Container], https://doi.org/10.26650/CONNECTIST2021-0088


Vancouver

Aksoy Z, Gökdemir Ö, Şemin Mİ. The Role of Community-based Health Practice on the Improvement of Healthcare Students’ Communication, Empathy and Perception of the Elderly: A Qualitative Study at Izmir University of Economics. Connectist: Istanbul University Journal of Communication Sciences [Internet]. 20 Apr. 2024 [cited 20 Apr. 2024];0(61):33-51. Available from: https://doi.org/10.26650/CONNECTIST2021-0088 doi: 10.26650/CONNECTIST2021-0088


ISNAD

Aksoy, Zeynep - Gökdemir, Özden - Şemin, Makbuleİlgi. The Role of Community-based Health Practice on the Improvement of Healthcare Students’ Communication, Empathy and Perception of the Elderly: A Qualitative Study at Izmir University of Economics”. Connectist: Istanbul University Journal of Communication Sciences 0/61 (Apr. 2024): 33-51. https://doi.org/10.26650/CONNECTIST2021-0088



TIMELINE


Submitted12.10.2020
Accepted06.02.2021
Published Online25.08.2021

LICENCE


Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC)

This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon your work non-commercially, and although their new works must also acknowledge you and be non-commercial, they don’t have to license their derivative works on the same terms.


SHARE




Istanbul University Press aims to contribute to the dissemination of ever growing scientific knowledge through publication of high quality scientific journals and books in accordance with the international publishing standards and ethics. Istanbul University Press follows an open access, non-commercial, scholarly publishing.