Every day, clinicians care for patients who have perplexing, unpredictable and fatal illnesses. Serious illness and uncertainty provoke distress in patients and in their clinicians. The suffering patients endure is often intense, and current medical science may seem incomprehensible to them. Patients and families complain that they feel distanced from a traditional source of comfort and education-their clinicians.

The American Academy on Communication in Healthcare offers faculty development courses, e-learning and on-site opportunities providing basic and advanced workshops which might form the basis for a continuing curriculum within an organization. On request, AACH will also train on-site facilitators and liaison persons in a "train-the-trainer" model.

AACH courses and workshops provide general principles, specific techniques and reflective time that will support clinicians' efforts to cope with diverse challenges to their humanity, integrity and ingenuity.

The learner-centered AACH courses are engaging and effective:

In many institutions, continuing education in communication is not highly valued. Some clinicians think they communicate well and perceive little benefit from further guidance. Others maximize their study of science and technology and minimize or ignore the inherent difficulties of communicating about these complex and disquieting matters. On request, Academy facilitators will consult with organizations to explore these common obstacles and to develop strategies that might improve performance and patient satisfaction ratings.

The rationale and implementation of the AACH approach to enhancing physicians' interview effectiveness was explored in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.* Through similar scholarly efforts spanning more than three decades, Academy members have advanced knowledge through publication of high quality basic and applied research on the medical interview. The AACH has also brought together knowledge about interviewing and teaching interviewing in doc.com: an e-learning resource for healthcare communication.

*Clark W, Lipkin M, Graman H, Shorey J. Improving Physicians' Relationships with Patients. J Gen Int Med 1999;14 (supplement):545-550.