OBJECTIVES

Supervision of communication competency in clinical settings in medicine is an important component of professional training. The purpose of this study was to describe the content and rationale of psychology and social work preceptor feedback to family medicine residents who express educational needs during case-based written vignettes.

METHODS

We conducted a qualitative study with 25 psychology and social work preceptors from family medicine departments of the three French-speaking universities in the province of Quebec, Canada. During an individual interview, preceptors were asked to respond to three short case-based written vignettes depicting resident educational issues regarding communication and to explain their responses. Authors analyzed the content of responses and the conceptual frameworks reported.

RESULTS

The three vignettes elicited 475 responses, including 58 distinct responses and 33 distinct conceptual frameworks. Therapeutic alliance and stages of grief were the two most reported conceptual frameworks.

CONCLUSION

The vignettes stimulated a wealth of responses and conceptual frameworks among psychology and social work preceptors in family medicine.

PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS

The complete list of responses could be useful for faculty development activities by stimulating preceptors' reflexive practice with regard to their responses, the educational goals of these responses and the conceptual frameworks underlying their feedback.