Medical students rehearse domestic abuse consultations through Forum Theatre simulation

Medical students at a UK medical school took part in a Forum Theatre simulation designed to prepare them for consultations involving domestic abuse, and a longitudinal qualitative study of their experiences suggests the approach left learning that persisted for months afterwards. The study, published in Advances in Simulation by Claire McPeake, Helen Reid and Gerard J. Gormley, explored how this participatory, theatre-based form of simulation could help undergraduates develop the relational and communication skills that domestic abuse enquiries demand.

Domestic abuse is a complex challenge for healthcare education, requiring clinicians to demonstrate competence in relational and communication skills. While simulation is well suited to experiential learning, the authors note that developing learners’ interactional abilities, such as adaptability and sensitivity to interpersonal cues, remains difficult with conventional methods. Forum Theatre, a participatory technique that emphasises social fidelity and active engagement, allows learners to rehearse complex interpersonal scenarios rather than observe them passively. Despite growing interest in the method within health professions education, evidence of its application to domestic abuse training has remained limited.

The intervention itself was an immersive general practice consultation incorporating observation, facilitated discussion and participant-led interventions. In Forum Theatre, participants do not simply watch a scenario unfold; they can step in, interrupt and reshape the action, rehearsing different ways of responding in real time.

The researchers conducted a longitudinal qualitative study using a phenomenological approach to explore the students’ lived experiences of the session. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews at one month and again at four to six months after the simulation, and transcripts were analysed using template analysis. A team-based, iterative approach supported analytical rigour, with reflexive practices maintained throughout the study.

Seven themes characterised the participants’ experiences. Strikingly, students described “forgetting that the [Forum Theatre] was not real,” indicating that the scenario achieved a level of immersion comparable to a genuine encounter while still creating a safe space to reflect on domestic abuse and on consulting more broadly. The forum integrated participants’ prior experiences, which the authors report enhanced engagement and psychological safety.

Participants also described becoming “filled up” with conceptual understanding that bridged the gap between theory and practice. The learning was described as embodied, and it was retained at the six-month follow-up, with students reporting that they drew upon it in practice.

Beyond knowledge and skills, Forum Theatre functioned as a platform for change in the students’ professional development. Participants reported an increased sense of professional responsibility, agency and capacity to act, effects that the study found extended beyond domestic abuse consultations to contexts of oppression more generally. The authors interpret this as the method fostering not only consultation technique but also professional identity, empathy and reflection.

The study’s conclusion is that Forum Theatre offers a powerful simulation-based approach for preparing medical students for domestic abuse consultations, creating a psychologically safe, immersive environment that bridges theory and practice and supports the development of compassionate, confident practitioners able to manage sensitive, relational clinical encounters. As a qualitative, single-institution study of students’ reported experiences, its findings describe how participants perceived and retained the learning rather than measuring clinical outcomes; the authors position the work as addressing persistent gaps in undergraduate education on domestic abuse, an area where evidence of effective training approaches remains limited.

Subject of Research: Forum Theatre simulation for preparing medical students for domestic abuse consultations

Article Title: Rehearsing for disclosure: Forum Theatre as simulation for preparing medical students for domestic abuse consultations

Article References: McPeake, C., Reid, H., & Gormley, G. J. (2026). Rehearsing for disclosure: Forum Theatre as simulation for preparing medical students for domestic abuse consultations. Advances in Simulation. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41077-026-00486-z

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1186/s41077-026-00486-z

Keywords: Forum Theatre, simulation, medical education, domestic abuse, qualitative research, communication skills, undergraduate medical training, psychological safety, phenomenology, longitudinal study, Rehearsing, disclosure