Code Status Discussions: A Standardized Patient Workshop for Senior Medical Students

Abstract

Introduction: Residents frequently conduct code status discussions (CSDs) with patients, but many report not receiving formal training in this skill. While institutions have attempted to address this, there remains a need for a curriculum that uses standardized patients (SPs), is generalizable to students interested in different medical specialties, and has been tested on a large sample of students. Methods: We trained 192 fourth-year medical students across four different campuses in how to conduct CSDs during one 2-hour workshop as part of their Transition to Residency course in April 2024. Students worked with SPs as part of this workshop. Students at our main campus completed pre- and postworkshop paper surveys evaluating their confidence levels across five domains. Results: A total of 84 (69%) of the 121 students at the main campus completed both a pre- and postworkshop survey. There was a statistically significant change in confidence levels from pre- to postworkshop, with a higher proportion of students selecting increased confidence levels across all five questions on the postworkshop survey. Discussion: Our workshop increased the confidence of fourth-year medical students in conducting CSDs. This session successfully implemented simulations that used SPs for training a large group of fourth-year medical students bound for different medical specialties. This is the first workshop of its size and breadth, and it may serve as a standardized curriculum for other institutions wishing to formally train medical students to conduct CSDs.