PRPlayers

Enhancing Clinical Communication Through Professional Role Play

Client Overview

Queen Mary University of London is one of the UK’s leading research-intensive institutions and a member of the Russell Group. With over 25,000 students from more than 160 nationalities, Queen Mary is set to double in size by 2030, expanding its global reach through campuses across London, China, Malta, and Paris.

The university’s Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, specifically the Institute for Health Sciences Education (IHSE), is responsible for delivering its MBBS medical degree, Physician Associate (PA) programmes, and dental education. A key aim of the IHSE is to produce clinically skilled, compassionate, and professional future healthcare practitioners, grounded in real-world clinical experience and reflective communication practice.

Challenge

The IHSE required a reliable and experienced partner to provide simulated patients (SPs) - highly trained actors portraying realistic clinical cases - to support the teaching and assessment of communication skills for MBBS, Physician Associate, and Dental students. These actors would need to deliver consistently standardised performances across a wide range of clinical scenarios and provide constructive feedback to students.

Specifically, the project aimed to:

• Prepare students for practical clinical assessments (OSCEs) and real-world patient interactions

• Ensure standardisation across simulated patient performance

• Enhance students' understanding of communication, empathy, professionalism, and patient-centred care

• Increase success rates in assessments where actor-led scenarios form a major component

Solution

Professional Role Players (PRP) partnered with IHSE to deliver a comprehensive solution for their simulated patient needs:

• Experienced role players were selected from PRP’s specialist medical team and trained to portray a wide range of clinical presentations.

• All actors completed PRP+ Induction and Standardisation training, ensuring consistency, accuracy, and reliability in performance.

• Scenarios were designed to reflect real-life complexity, incorporating both emotional and clinical challenges.

• PRP provided actors for both formative teaching sessions and summative assessments, including high-stakes OSCEs.

• Actors were trained to give structured feedback to students, helping them improve their clinical communication skills in a supportive learning environment.

Each simulated patient delivered the full gestalt of the character - from clinical history and body language to emotional responses and behavioural realism aligning with Barrows’ foundational definition (1987) of standardised patients.

Results

PRP’s simulated patients have become a core element of Queen Mary’s communication skills curriculum and assessment strategy. Key outcomes include:

• Consistently high student engagement and satisfaction, particularly in communication training with actors

• Enhanced performance in national licensing exams, with students reporting increased confidence in OSCE stations involving simulated patients

• Improved understanding of patient-centred care, cultural competence, and professional behaviour

• Support in developing essential skills in breaking bad news, managing difficult conversations, and clinical reasoning under pressure

Studies such as those by Blackmore et al. (2018) and Cleland (2009) affirm the effectiveness of simulation-based education in improving communication competencies an approach that Queen Mary continues to champion through its work with PRP.

Testimonial Value

"Simulated patients played by professional actors are not only essential for exam preparation — they’re invaluable in preparing our students for their future clinical careers."
— Faculty Lead, Queen Mary University of London

Professional Role Players is proud to support Queen Mary University of London in educating the next generation of medical and dental professionals through immersive, effective, and realistic simulation training.