S. DE LA CRUZ ET AL.
Table 2.
SP evaluation of students’ performance.
% of SPs responding “Yes”
SP Checklist Item Contr ol Intervention p-value
initiated
conversation about nutrition
59% 62% 0.715
64% 63% 0.351
clearly explained the
biological consequ ences of starvation
48% 76% 0.005
The results of this study further supports the idea that films
can be u sed as an adjun ct in medi cal ed ucat io n to provid e expe-
riences that are hard to ensure consistently during clinical
training. The students surveyed as part of this study agreed that
documentary films can be effective tools for teaching and
agreed that “Dying Wish” improved knowledge of the physical
effects of stopping eating and drinking. The efficacy of “Dying
Wish” is consistent with prior studies of humanities modalities
as educational tools for end of life topics (Self, DeWitt, &
Baldwin, 1990; Lorenz, Steckart, & Rosenfeld, 2004; Weber &
Silk, 2007; Kumagai, 2008).
There are some limitations to this study and its assessment.
As the film was shown to students as part of a weeklong mul-
timodal end of life curriculum, it is difficult to isolate the ef-
fects of the film on the changes in self-reported attitudes and
knowledge. It is also unclear how evaluations and self-reported
efficacy at this early point in medical students’ careers will
translate to ability in actual practice. Traditionally self-report
has been an unreliable measure of clinical skill (Davis, Thom-
son, O’Brien, F reemantle, Wol f, Maz manian, & Ta yl o r-Vaisey,
1999).
Conclusion
Although the self-reported knowledge and skills around
counseling patients regarding nutrition and VRFF at the end of
life we re not significantly altered by viewing “Dying Wish”,
the film did affect students’ ability to clearly explain the bio-
logical effects of stopping eating and drinking to SPs. This is
likely due to the film’s visual depiction of the process of stop-
ping eating and drinking at the end of life. Documentaries and
other humanities modalities are considered by students to be
effective teach ing too ls and “Dyi ng Wish” represen ts a feasible
way to deliver instruction regarding VRFF and nutrition at the
end of life. Visual depictions and documentary films that por-
tray the natural courses of illnesses may prove to be helpful,
efficien t teachin g tool s and their role in the educat ional process
for healthcare providers should continue to be studied.
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