Co-Learning workshops as a practice for teaching adults communication skills 

Since the start of 2025, Co-Learning workshops have been running as part of the project. Four groups of educators and practitioners from the healthcare sector, each having held around seven meetings during this time: over 70 participants, eight facilitators, and 28 peer-group sessions. Curious what this format is and how it benefits the self-education of adults and established professionals? Read on to find out. 

Not a lecture. And not even a training session 

The Co-Learning workshops are built in a peer-group format, with two facilitators present at all times – one representing educators, the other practitioners. There is no classic role of the ‘expert’ who knows the answers. And there are no ‘listeners’ who silently ‘take notes’ on those answers. Everyone is involved in co-creation. 

If we look at the co-learning workshops through the lens of andragogy, the theory of adult learning, it becomes clear why this format has proved so natural for the participants. 

Adults learn differently. For them, it is important to: 

• see the practical value of learning; 

• draw on their own experience; 

• be able to influence the process; 

• solve real problems, rather than ones detached from context. 

These are precisely the principles underpinning the workshops. 

There is no pre-determined ‘correct’ programme here – it is shaped by the requests of the participants in each individual group. And although the topics vary from group to group, they all revolve around communication, empathy, and a human-centred approach.  

The topics the participants chose for their joint research and learning centred on skills for empathetic and effective communication. There was a particularly strong demand for working with bad news and critical situations, and for tools and protocols to handle them. 

Bridging the gaps between curricula and practical experience  

One of the key contexts in which these workshops should be viewed is the gap between formal medical education and the demands of real-world practice. These two contexts need to be aligned, and the workshops are moving in this direction.  

Skills in communication, empathy, and a person-centred approach are not only highly relevant but also an integral part of the medical environment where patients are at the heart of the system. At the same time, in the curricula of medical higher education institutions, these topics are often covered in a fragmented manner and presented as unimportant knowledge. Meanwhile, practitioners complain of a lack of time for empathetic communication, often citing the risk of burnout. However, in our workshops we dispel these myths and explain that mastering empathy skills is essential for preventing burnout, provided the tools are used correctly.  

As a result, doctors and teachers find themselves in a situation where they have ‘heard of it’ but do not always understand exactly how it works. And does it work at all?  

Co-Learning workshops partially address this challenge. 

They do not replace formal education, but they create a space where participants can: 

• analyse real-life situations; 

• practise the tools;  

• hear about colleagues’ experiences; 

• and gradually integrate these skills into one’s own practice.  

Potential for systemic change 

At this stage, Сo-Learning workshops can be seen as a pilot format. But their potential is already visible beyond that of a single educational project. 

This is about the opportunity to: 

• complement formal curricula with practice-oriented formats; 

• develop communities of teachers and practitioners; 

• promote a facilitation-based approach to learning; 

• and, finally, shift the culture of medical education towards a more person-centred approach. 

From knowledge to action 

Importantly, in this format, communication and empathy are no longer ‘soft skills’ in a purely theoretical sense. 

They become the subject of active work. After all, it is not enough simply to prescribe treatment in silence. Doctors cannot deliver bad news to a patient and then disappear. So how should conflict situations be handled? How do you talk about sensitive topics or make treatment decisions together? What should be done when a patient becomes aggressive? 

This knowledge is not a ‘luxury extra’ but a ‘basic requirement’ of the present day.  

There are no universal or quick answers to these questions. But they require a space where they can be explored. They need to be discussed both in educational institutions and among practitioners!  

It is exactly this kind of space that the workshops have become.