Designing a Communication Skills Professional Development Course for Healthcare Professionals in the UAE: Reflections on the Process,Challenges,Successes,and Implications

Abstract

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) has expanded to support increasingly economic and technologically competitive environments, often governed by Adult Learning and Education (ALE) principles. In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), however, despite the importance given to CPD, the field of ALE remains underdeveloped. Bearing this in mind, a group of five UAE-based trainers documented the design and implementation of a Communication Skills for Caregivers course using the Interactive Model of Program Planning by Caffarella and Daffron. This article discusses the process followed to contribute to the region’s ALE/CPD design discourse as well as to reflect on the trainers’ practices and provide recommendations and implications for future CPD.

Keywords

Continuing Professional Development Adult Learning and Education Interactive Model of Program Planning course design

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