The Use of International Videoconferencing as a Strategy for Teaching Medical Students about Transcultural Psychiatry

Videoconferencing is an innovative method that potentially allows medical students exposure to international teachers in refugee mental health who would otherwise be inaccessible. This article reports a pilot study using videoconferencing with international teachers from Australia, Sweden and the USA participating in the training of ten senior Swedish medical students. Interviews with an actual and a simulated patient were conducted at the U.S. and Australian sites respectively, followed by discussions involving those two sites with students and their supervisors in Sweden. Students evaluated the method favourably, as did the teachers, although the brevity of the program was seen as a limitation. Teachers noted the importance of preparing students and patients and ensuring that the technology operates smoothly to ensure success. Although cost-effective in teaching medical students in developed countries, videoconferencing may still be out of the reach of training programs in many developing countries where it is most needed.