Browsing by Author "Du Plessis, Madelé"

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    Evaluating an isiXhosa clinical communication course at a health sciences faculty
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-03) Du Plessis, Madelé; Fourie-Malherbe, Magda; Archer, Elize; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Curriculum Studies
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT : For healthcare professionals the ability to communicate in the language of their patients is of prime importance. When language barriers between the healthcare professional and the patient occur, effective communication cannot take place, and, in turn, high quality care cannot be delivered. Many medical schools implement language programmes to equip students with the required language skills. However, these language programmes often tend to focus on language use in general situations, rather than focusing on clinical communication. Furthermore, these programmes do not necessarily comply with the requirements of the communicator competency of the CanMEDS framework. There is thus a need to evaluate the effectiveness of such language programmes. The aim of this study was to determine whether the isiXhosa clinical communication course implemented at Stellenbosch University Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences is enabling students to communicate in the language of their patients. In addition, the research aimed to determine whether the communication course effectively contributes to the development of the communicator competency of the CanMEDS framework. Data was gathered by means of individual interviews, questionnaires, observations, as well as document analysis. Two distinct populations were sampled, namely students and lecturers involved in the isiXhosa clinical communication course. The students included Occupational Therapy (third year) students, Human Nutrition (third year) students, and Speech-Language and Hearing Therapy (fourth year) students. The findings indicate that the course material provided to students is not fully aligned with the requirements of the communicator competency. Therefore, students only have limited knowledge and vocabulary in isiXhosa. However, even though students have not acquired sufficient isiXhosa vocabulary and knowledge needed to communicate in a clinical context, they are still able to apply what they have learnt, enabling them to establish a positive relationship with patients.