Improvement of medical students' performance in simulated patient interviews by pre-clinical communication training.

Objectives: To compare the communication skills shown by medical students during simulated patient interviews between those who received training in communication during the preclinical years and those who did not.

Methods: A retrospective study was conducted to analyze the communication skills of several cohorts of fourth-year medical students from Universitat Internacional de Catalunya during simulated patient interviews. Out of a total of 477 students included in the study, 229 (48%) had received training in communication skills through a 60-hour elective course during the preclinical second year, while the remaining 248 (52%) had received none.