Humanising Healthcare

Round table discussions changing the culture of addiction medicine​

​​

Our Conversation Cafés are changing the way medics think about and approach addiction by bringing them together with people Lived Experience in a session of round-table discussions.

​

Read about the story of the Conversation Café.

 

Most medical students will go through years of study and come out of medical school without a thorough understanding of addiction and recovery, even in Scotland where its so critical. Scotland has the worst drug death rate in Europe (more than 1,000 people died of a drug death in 2022). But at the same time, it has flourishing communities of people in recovery from their addictions and sustaining new lives.

​

Our Conversation Cafés connect medical students with people in recovery – experts by experience. During our Conversation Cafés, students and people in the recovery community come together to learn from each other by listening, asking questions and exchanging stories.

 

The two-hour session begins with a 15 minute talk from a member of the community. After that, each group (made up of students and people in recovery) is presented with a question to consider. After a question has been discussed, the medical students move round the room, enabling a change in the groups. As the groups discuss each question, people can write down key words related to it, which are gathered together and displayed. These key words often guide the final part of the session when everyone has a chance to share their thoughts on each question with the room as a whole. 

​

Here are the five questions we ask:

• What does recovery mean to you?

• What are the roots and origins of addiction?

• What are the first steps to recovery and how can healthcare professionals help with them?

• What is harm reduction and how can healthcare professionals support it?

• What maintains your recovery?

​

The concept is simple but the shift in thinking and understanding that can come out of it is extraordinary.

 

Here is some of the feedback we have received from medical students:

​

"I feel like I've learnt more in two hours, than I have in my whole time in medical school.”

- Third year medical student, University of Aberdeen

​

“This session was better than any lecture I've had. Speaking with people going through recovery is eye-opening and very much has changed my views on how as a future professional I can help.”

- Third year medical student, University of Aberdeen

​

“This session explored stigmas and allowed us to ask questions without judgement. I feel I have a better understanding of addicts' experience, how they got there and what I can do in the future. I think the experience is so useful in improving understanding and should be provided to all medical students.”

- Third year medical student, University of Glasgow

​

So far, we have run Conversation Cafés in four of the five medical schools in Scotland. The Scottish Government has endorsed the project and is supporting us in our ambition to incorporate the project into medical curricula across Scotland. We have also run Conversation Cafés outside medical schools, for example at the Deep End GP Conference. After the session, one GP reflected: “I wish I had this opportunity 20 years ago when I first qualified as a doctor."

​

The University of Dundee incorporated the project into its psychiatry curriculum in 2023, meaning that every student now has the opportunity to sit down and learn from people with lived experience. Where the project is not part of the curriculum, attendance is optional for students. Conversation Cafés are guided by trained volunteer facilitators. If you are interested in becoming a facilitator, you can register your interest with Hugo.​

​