Development and testing of a virtual patient-based training program on shared decision making for undergraduate medical students.

In shared decision making (SDM), physicians and patients make decisions together by taking into account both the most recent scientific findings and the wishes, expectations and preferences of the patient. In this collaborative process, patient-centered communication skills are combined with scientific evidence such as trustworthy guideline recommendations in order to improve the quality of care. Allthough considered best practice, SDM is not being applied in number and manner as it should be. In this project, we aim to support SDM implementation by creating a well-founded training program on SDM for undergraduate medical students. The training program will be based on virtual patients, to enhance feasibility of implementation.