Patient-Physician Communication
A.Y. 2024/2025
Learning objectives
The course provides students with the necessary tools for managing communication and relational aspects of their future medical profession. To this aim, the course comprises two parts: a first part in which, through frontal teaching, students will acquire the fundamental psychological concepts needed to understand the basic mechanisms underlying individual and social behavior; and a second part in which, through both frontal teaching and professional activities, students will acquire knowledge, skills and competences in the relationship and communication processes between patient and physician.
Expected learning outcomes
At the end of the course the student will attain knowledge on the building blocks of human behavior, its changes during the life span and its adjustment to life events and circumstances, including disease. The student will acquire tools and strategies to adequately manage the communication with patients, their relatives and other health professionals, taking into account one's and others' values; the ability and sensitivity to critically assess medical practices within the healthcare team through the knowledge of rules and processes characterizing team work; an interdisciplinary and inter-cultural openness, specifically aware of differences in values and habits within the current multiethnic society.
Lesson period: year
Assessment methods: Esame
Assessment result: voto verbalizzato in trentesimi
Single course
This course cannot be attended as a single course. Please check our list of single courses to find the ones available for enrolment.
Course syllabus and organization
Single session
Prerequisites for admission
No preliminary knowledge is required
Assessment methods and Criteria
The exam consists of a written test and an oral evaluation.
The written test, concerning the General Psychology module, comprises 30 multiple-choice questions with 5 possible answers, of which only one is correct. Correct answers are attributed a score of 1; wrong answers are attributed a score of 0. The total score to the written test is the sum of the scores to the right answers and it is calculated right at the end of the test.
Students can inspect their test and decide whether to accept the mark. Those who pass the written test (score equal to or higher than 18/30) may have access to the oral evaluation which takes place at the end of the written test.
The oral exam will assess students' knowledge about the learning programs of the Clinical Psychology and Internal Medicine modules, with regard to their achievement of the expected learning outcomes.
Both the written test and the oral evaluation will take place during the same exam session. The final mark will be the arithmetic mean of the score obtained at the written test and the score obtained at the oral evaluation. There are no intermediate or early exam sessions.
The written test, concerning the General Psychology module, comprises 30 multiple-choice questions with 5 possible answers, of which only one is correct. Correct answers are attributed a score of 1; wrong answers are attributed a score of 0. The total score to the written test is the sum of the scores to the right answers and it is calculated right at the end of the test.
Students can inspect their test and decide whether to accept the mark. Those who pass the written test (score equal to or higher than 18/30) may have access to the oral evaluation which takes place at the end of the written test.
The oral exam will assess students' knowledge about the learning programs of the Clinical Psychology and Internal Medicine modules, with regard to their achievement of the expected learning outcomes.
Both the written test and the oral evaluation will take place during the same exam session. The final mark will be the arithmetic mean of the score obtained at the written test and the score obtained at the oral evaluation. There are no intermediate or early exam sessions.
Clinical psychology
Course syllabus
Concept of health and illness
Health models in illness prevention and management
Perception of vulnerability and exposure to risk factors
Social and individual resources in illness management
Decision styles of patients and physicians
Patients' social and family contexts
Patients' value and cultural environment
Chronic disease, disability and psychic and/or physical impairment
SPIKES protocol for delivering bad news
Case studies discussion and role-playing simulations of patient-physician communication in relation to: preventive medicine; acute and chronic diseases; disabling diseases; reproductive medicine; oncology
Health models in illness prevention and management
Perception of vulnerability and exposure to risk factors
Social and individual resources in illness management
Decision styles of patients and physicians
Patients' social and family contexts
Patients' value and cultural environment
Chronic disease, disability and psychic and/or physical impairment
SPIKES protocol for delivering bad news
Case studies discussion and role-playing simulations of patient-physician communication in relation to: preventive medicine; acute and chronic diseases; disabling diseases; reproductive medicine; oncology
Teaching methods
The module consists of frontal teaching classes and small-group activities. The slides of the lectures and other possible learning materials are available to students on MyAriel platform.
Teaching Resources
Delle Fave, A., Bassi, M. (2013). Psicologia e salute. Esperienze e risorse dei protagonisti della cura [Psychology and health. Experiences and resources of the protagonists in the care process] (2nd Ed.). Torino: UTET Università.
General psychology
Course syllabus
Perception
Learning
Memory
Thought and reasoning
Language and communication
Emotions
Motivation
Attention and consciousness
Life span development
Learning
Memory
Thought and reasoning
Language and communication
Emotions
Motivation
Attention and consciousness
Life span development
Teaching methods
The module consists of frontal teaching classes. The slides of the lectures and other possible learning materials are available to students on MyAriel platform.
Teaching Resources
Bassi M., Delle Fave A. (Eds.) (2019). Psicologia generale per le professioni medico-sanitarie [General Psychology for health professionals]. II edizione. Torino: UTET Università.
Internal medicine
Course syllabus
Palliative care: emblematic model of care, history and organization Quality of life and quality of dying Awareness Pain and suffering The healthcare team and the accompanying process Life between therapeutic persistance and discontinuation Ethical issues
Teaching methods
The module consists of frontal teaching classes. The slides of the lectures and other possible learning materials are available to students on MyAriel platform.
Teaching Resources
Delle Fave, A., Bassi, M. (2013). Psicologia e salute. Esperienze e risorse dei protagonisti della cura [Psychology and health. Experiences and resources of the protagonists in the care process] (2nd Ed.). Torino: UTET Università.
Clinical psychology
M-PSI/08 - CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY - University credits: 2
Practicals: 16 hours
Lessons: 8 hours
: 4 hours
Lessons: 8 hours
: 4 hours
Professor:
Delle Fave Antonella
Shifts:
Turno
Professor:
Delle Fave Antonella
General psychology
M-PSI/01 - GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY - University credits: 5
Lessons: 40 hours
: 20 hours
: 20 hours
Professor:
Bassi Marta
Shifts:
Turno
Professor:
Bassi Marta
Internal medicine
MED/09 - INTERNAL MEDICINE - University credits: 1
Lessons: 8 hours
: 4 hours
: 4 hours
Professor:
Brizio Anna
Shifts:
Turno
Professor:
Brizio AnnaEducational website(s)
Professor(s)