Background: Final-year medical students at the University of Bergen take a 16-hour consultation course. The students are trained in an educational setting focusing on structured elements of the patient-centred consultation method, self evaluation and peer evaluation. The course has a strong emphasis on learning by doing. The objective of this study was to evaluate the learning process and the subjective outcome of the course. We used a focus group technique and a self-administered free text based questionnaire.
Material and methods: Transcriptions from the focus groups and free text from the questionnaires were analysed using qualitative methods.
Results: The qualitative analysis revealed three main categories of statements about the learning process: about the process of selfchange in the consultations; about the pain of self evaluation; and about insufficiency faced with clinical uncertainty.
Interpretation: We conclude that the course seems to initiate changes in consultation strategies. The students' evaluation also underline the need to take care of the students during a process of change in which they are vulnerable.