A new approach to developing cross-cultural communication skills.

The need for cross-cultural training (CCT) increases as physicians encounter more culturally diverse patients. However, most medical schools relegate this topic to non-clinical years, hindering skills development. Some residency programs have successfully addressed this deficit by teaching cross-cultural communication skills in a teaching objective structured clinical examination (tOSCE) context.

Demography of pediatric primary care in Europe: delivery of care and training.

Objective: The Union of National European Pediatric Societies and Associations recognized the lack of information regarding demography of delivery of care and training for the doctors who care for children in Europe. Therefore, the Union of National European Pediatric Societies and Associations studied factors and explanations for the variation between countries regarding pediatric primary care (PPC) and community pediatrics (CP) as well as the extent of formal training provided for those who take care of children at the community level.

Methods: An explanatory letter and a questionnaire with 12 questions regarding delivery of PPC and CP and training was mailed to the president of each of 41 national pediatric societies in Europe.