Narrative Competence among Chinese Medical Students: A Necessary Step in Developing a Narrative Medicine Module

Background: Understanding medical students’ narrative competence is critical as it could provide the basis for the development of narrative medical education in clinical and medical universities. Objective: This study sought to investigate the current situation of narrative competence among medical students in Jiangxi Province, China. Methods: An online questionnaire (Narrative Competence Scale, NCS) survey was conducted among 388 medical undergraduates in eight universities from different cities in Jiangxi Province with stratified sampling and convenient sampling. Results: The findings revealed a low level among medical students. There were statistically significant differences between students with different levels of exposure to narrative medicine on the dimensions of narrative competence and overall scores. However, there was no significant difference in the scores on the dimensions of narrative competence and overall gender and grade level. Conclusions: There was little difference in the level of narrative competence between medical school students and experienced medical and health staff, suggesting that clinical experience without a focus on narrative medicine does not have a large impact on narrative competence. Participating in training related to narrative medicine helps to strengthen the narrative competence of medical students. Implications: This study implied that the exposure of narrative medicine is an effective way for medical students to improve their level of narrative competence. Suggestions for future research: Future research should focus on the development of narrative medicine curriculum that incorporate the cultures of different countries and implement them in medical universities to improve the level of narrative competence of medical students.