Effectiveness of asynchronous feedback in teaching motivational interviewing skills

IntroductionCommunication is an essential skill for pharmacists. Motivational interviewing is an advanced communication technique used for health behavior change. Studies have evaluated standardized patient (SP) simulation to develop communication skills; however, little is known about the use of SP simulations with asynchronous feedback in a telepharmacy scenario. ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to determine if the use of asynchronous embedded faculty feedback will improve students' motivational interviewing skills. MethodsDuring didactic training, students were introduced to motivational interviewing, practiced evaluation using a standardized rubric (max score 25), and participated in role-play. Following training, students completed 2 weeks of lab simulation, one formative and one summative, in which students completed a 5-min motivational interview with a SP via Zoom (c) which was recorded to allow for student self-evaluation and asynchronous faculty video-embedded feedback. Each encounter was assessed by faculty using the standardized rubric. The primary outcome measure was the difference in faculty evaluation scores of student interviews between the formative and summative labs. Secondary outcome measures included the difference in student self-evaluation scores between the formative to summative labs and a number of students achieving competency (>= 80%) or mastery (>= 90%). Statistical analysis was completed using Wilcoxon signed rank tests (SAS (R) version 9.4). ResultsOne hundred fourteen students completed the study. Scores improved by a mean of 3.8 points between the formative and summative labs. Student self-evaluation improved an average of 1.5 points between the labs. Competency and mastery were achieved by 89.5% and 52.6% of students, respectively. Score differences were not influenced by SP assigned. Use of SP and embedded asynchronous feedback in a motivational interviewing telepharmacy simulation resulted in improved student performance.