Table 1 Survey tool
Question | Answer Choice Type |
|---|---|
Academic level (clinical year 1 vs. clinical year 2) | Binary Categorical |
Gender | Binary Categorical |
Is Arabic your primary language? | Binary Categorical |
Were you raised bilingual? | Binary Categorical |
If yes, which languages did you speak at home as a child? | Open-Ended Short Answer |
High school language | Open-Ended Short Answer |
Undergraduate language | Open-Ended Short Answer |
Medical instruction language | Open-Ended Short Answer |
Which language did you speak yesterday at dinner? | Open-Ended Short Answer |
Have you had any practice in history taking/communication skills in Arabic during your clinical skills courses in the pre-clinical years, before you began working in a hospital? | Binary Categorical |
Have you practiced history taking or medical communication skills in Arabic outside the hospital (e.g. Red Cross)? | Binary Categorical |
Do you feel confident in taking a history in French or English? | Likert Scale (4 Categories) |
Do you feel confident taking a history in Arabic? | Likert Scale (4 Categories) |
Will most of the patients you will see in the future speak Arabic/English/French/Other? | Categorical |
For those who presented Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs) during the pre-clinical years in English/French instead of Arabic, do you think this negatively affected your communication skills in Arabic at the hospital? | Likert Scale (4 Categories) |
Do you think it would be beneficial to introduce a communication course in Arabic before you begin working in a hospital setting? | Likert Scale (4 Categories) |
Do you have any suggestions to improve the communication skills of Lebanese medical students in Arabic? | Open-Ended Short Answer |