Naomi Sugimoto 1)4)5), Nobuko Aida 2)5), Kazuhiko Fujisaki 3) 3)6)7)8)
1) Faculty of Nursing and Medical Care, Keio University
2) Institute of Health Science, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Shinshu University
3) Professor Emeritus, Gifu University
4) Director of Health Communication Week Organization
5) Steering Committee Member of Japan Association of Nursing Communication
6) Congress Chair of the Second Annual Meeting of Japan Association of Nursing Communication
7) Vice President of Japan Association of Nursing Communication
8) Vice Chairman of the Steering Committee of Japan Association of Nursing Communication
Kikuko Taketomi
Sapporo City University
To clarify how nursing students learn communication skills and what forms of support are effective in fostering those skills, this study organized the characteristics of communication skill acquisition according to grade progression in the undergraduate basic nursing education curriculum in Japan. Analysis of educational lecture content, seminars, clinical placements, and the end-of-year Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCE) indicated that communication skills develop in a multidimensional and sequential manner from basic interpersonal abilities to applied and context-dependent competencies. First-year students learned foundational skills such as self-expression and active listening through role-play. In the second and third years, challenges related to addressing patient individuality and to interprofessional communication became evident. The fourth year required integrated and advanced competencies, including multidisciplinary collaboration and decision-making in complex situations. The OSCE effectively visualized practical communication behaviors by evaluating greetings, self-introductions, explanations and informed consent, active listening, and assessment. However, individual differences in self-efficacy, interpersonal experience, and clinical learning environments influenced students’ performance. These findings highlight the importance of a phased learning design, the meaningful use of formative assessment, learner-specific support, and the establishment of frameworks that enable the visualization of communication competency development in nursing education contexts.
Keiko Abe
Department of Nursing, Faculty of Nursing, Kinjo Gakuin University
Recently, as healthcare has become increasingly diverse and complex, communication skills─the foundation of nursing─have become more critical than ever.
There is a strong demand for holistic healthcare that integrates the physical, psychological, and social aspects of patients without separating them, but rather recognizing their mutual influences.
Irrespective of generation, respecting patients and their families and understanding their reality of living with illness is indispensable.
All interactions with individuals involve communication (verbal and non-verbal), and nursing practice is significantly influenced by nurses’ ability to effectively communicate with their patients.
Notably, new nursing students tend to be characterized by sparse interpersonal relationships and limited life experiences,
compounded by a student life dominated by non-face-to-face communication owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Therefore, it is essential that nursing education enables students to acquire communication skills in stages, according to their readiness.
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare’s “Report on Basic Nursing Education” (2019) recommends expanding experiential exercises, such as using simulated patients (SPs) and simulators.
Experiential learning is effective for studying interactions in communication, and exercises involving interactions with SPs under appropriate tension are effective for deepening patient understanding.
Furthermore, feedback from SPs holds significant educational value in promoting awareness of the impact one has on others.
This article describes an attempt to construct a stepwise communication education program spanning all 4 years of the nursing program
and to evaluate communication skills using both subjective assessments and Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCE).
The study aim was to examine the effectiveness and challenges of communication education that uses SPs, grounded in communication theory.
Yaeko Terada
Nursing Department, Nagoya University Hospital
New nurses often focus on performing their nursing duties and thus may tend to communicate with their patients without checking the patient’s reactions. Importantly, the words nurses use to gather information or convey risks to their patients may be more difficult for patients to accept if they feel there is not a trusting relationship between them. Moreover, because the value of nurse-patient communication is determined by the patient, it is important to base that communication on trust, not only on technical communication skills. Furthermore, the spread of COVID-19 and the related culture and experiences of being unable to communicate in person have changed the way new Generation Z nurses perceive communication. However, to provide nursing care that is rooted in the Philosophy of the Nursing Department at Nagoya University Hospital, the decision was taken to change the way communication training was conducted, given that acquiring communication skills and interacting with patients is the foundation for all health care. By repeating a 10-month cycle comprising learning, practicing, reflecting, and clarifying issues, employees were able to realize the importance of building trusting relationships with patients.
Japan Association of Nursing Communication