Family medicine role models at US medical schools. Why their relative numbers are declining

1993 ◽  
Vol 2 (8) ◽  
pp. 827-832 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Campos-Outcalt
PRiMER ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maribeth P. Williams ◽  
Denny Fe Agana ◽  
Benjamin J. Rooks ◽  
Grant Harrell ◽  
Rosemary A. Klassen ◽  
...  

Introduction: With the estimated future shortage of primary care physicians there is a need to recruit more medical students into family medicine. Longitudinal programs or primary care tracks in medical schools have been shown to successfully recruit students into primary care. The aim of this study was to examine the characteristics of primary care tracks in departments of family medicine.  Methods: Data were collected as part of the 2016 CERA Family Medicine Clerkship Director Survey. The survey included questions regarding the presence and description of available primary care tracks as well as the clerkship director’s perception of impact. The survey was distributed via email to 125 US and 16 Canadian family medicine clerkship directors.  Results: The response rate was 86%. Thirty-five respondents (29%) reported offering a longitudinal primary care track. The majority of tracks select students on a competitive basis, are directed by family medicine educators, and include a wide variety of activities. Longitudinal experience in primary care ambulatory settings and primary care faculty mentorship were the most common activities. Almost 70% of clerkship directors believe there is a positive impact on students entering primary care.  Conclusions: The current tracks are diverse in what they offer and could be tailored to the missions of individual medical schools. The majority of clerkship directors reported that they do have a positive impact on students entering primary care.


2019 ◽  
Vol 51 (10) ◽  
pp. 811-816
Author(s):  
Joanna Drowos ◽  
Tomoko Sairenji ◽  
Kristen Hood Watson ◽  
Vanessa A. Diaz ◽  
Jasmine Pinckney ◽  
...  

Background and Objectives: Family medicine clerkship directors must secure an adequate number of teaching sites while maintaining or improving the quality of teaching. This survey details how family medicine clerkship directors identify community-based clinical sites with performance challenges, types of challenges, and whether a remediation option exists for struggling clinical sites or preceptors. This study also investigates the relationship between clerkship structure and problems with maintaining high-quality teaching sites. Methods: Data were gathered and analyzed as part of the 2018 Council of Academic Family Medicine’s (CAFM) Educational Research Alliance (CERA) survey of family medicine clerkship directors. Results: There was a significant relationship between ease/difficulty of identifying clinical sites and paying preceptors (P=.032). A lower proportion of sites where a system is in place for remediation reported it being difficult to identify clinical sites (70.0% vs 92.2%, respectively, P=.011). Having a remediation system in place was also associated with less removal of sites (2.5% removed three or more sites vs 25% removed three or more sites, respectively, P=.005). Conclusions: Medical education leaders can explore payment to incentivize community-based preceptors in schools where identifying clinical sites is a challenge. Offering centralized preceptor development activities from medical schools, geared toward the importance of evaluations, balancing learners and opportunities for student engagement, may overcome some of the identified challenges. Medical schools may also consider providing additional time and support for clerkship directors to assist with tracking teaching quality at sites, and to assist struggling preceptors prior to removing them from teaching.


2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 91-97
Author(s):  
Mónica López-García ◽  
María Candelaria Ayuso-Raya ◽  
Jesús López-Torres-Hidalgo ◽  
Julio Montoya-Fernández ◽  
Francisco Campa-Valera ◽  
...  

2017 ◽  
Vol 59 (3) ◽  
pp. 36
Author(s):  
Tanko Salihu Tanimu ◽  
Godpower Chinedu Michael ◽  
Aliyu Ibrahim ◽  
Bukar Alhaji Grema ◽  
Abubakar Abiso Mohammed

Introduction: Undergraduate medical education requires the studying of a wide range of medical specialties to produce the future workforce of the healthcare system. Family medicine (FM), a relatively new specialty in Nigeria, aims at supplying doctors capable of providing comprehensive healthcare for the majority of the population. However, many Nigerian medical schools (Bayero University inclusive) are yet to include FM in their undergraduate curriculum. Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study of 178 respondents randomly and proportionately selected from 400-, 500- and 600-level medical students of Bayero University Kano. Using a structured questionnaire, their awareness of FM discipline, specialty preferences, factors influencing specialty preferences and their views on the relevance of FM in improving health systems were assessed. Results: A majority of the respondents (60.7%) were males and most (93.8%) had heard of FM. However, only 19.7% of respondents were aware that FM was taught in the undergraduate programme of medical schools; 86% were aware of a postgraduate FM programme. FM (22.5%) was the second most preferred specialty following surgery (23.6%). Personal interest in the specialty was the main (76.5%) reason for preference. Only 2.9% believed the postgraduate training for FM had a longer duration. All respondents believed FM was relevant as a specialty. Conclusion: The knowledge and perception of the FM discipline among clinical medical students of Bayero University was good. They expressed that FM was relevant in the healthcare system as shown in their preference for the specialty, which ranked second among other specialties. (Full text of the research articles are available online at www.medpharm.tandfonline.com/ojfp) S Afr Fam Pract 2017; DOI: 10.1080/20786190.2017.1313487


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frederico Alberto Bussolaro ◽  
Claudine Thereza-Bussolaro

ABSTRACTBackgroundActive learning is a well-established educational methodology in medical schools worldwide, although its implementation in Brazilian clinical settings is quite challenging. The objective of this study is to review the literature in a systematic manner to find and conduct a reflective analysis of how problem-based learning (PBL) has been applied to clinical teaching in medical schools in Brazil.Material & methodsA systematic literature search was conducted in three databases. A total of 250 papers related to PBL in Brazilian medical schools were identified through the database searches. Four studies were finally selected for the review.ResultsFour fields of medicine were explored on the four selected papers: gynecology/family medicine, medical semiology, psychiatry, and pediatrics. Overall, all the papers reported some level of strategic adaptability of the original PBL methodology to be applied in the Brazilian medical school’s curricula and to the peculiar characteristics specific to Brazil.ConclusionPBL application in Brazilian medical schools require some level of alteration from the original format, to better adapt to the characteristics of Brazilian students’ maturity, health system priorities and the medical labor market.


2018 ◽  
Vol 57 (3) ◽  
pp. 148-154
Author(s):  
Irena Zakarija-Grković ◽  
Davorka Vrdoljak ◽  
Venija Cerovečki

Abstract Introduction There is a dearth of published literature on the organisation of family medicine/general practice undergraduate teaching in the former Yugoslavia. Methods A semi-structured questionnaire was sent to the addresses of 19 medical schools in the region. Questions covered the structure of Departments of Family Medicine (DFM), organisation of teaching, assessment of students and their involvement in departmental activities. Results Thirteen medical schools responded, of which twelve have a formal DFM. Few DFM have full-time staff, with most relying upon external collaborators. Nine of 13 medical schools have family doctors teaching other subjects, covering an average of 2.4 years of the medical curriculum (range: 1-5). The total number of hours dedicated to teaching ranged from 30 - 420 (Md 180). Practice-based teaching prevails, which is conducted both in city and rural practices in over half of the respondent schools. Written exams are conducted at all but two medical schools, with the written grade contributing between 30 and 75 percent (Md=40%) of the total score. Nine medical schools have a formal method of practical skills assessment, five of which use Objective Structured Clinical Examinations. Student participation is actively sought at all but three medical schools, mainly through research. Conclusion Most medical schools of the former Yugoslavia recognise the importance of family medicine in undergraduate education, although considerable variations exist in the organisation of teaching. Where DFM do not exist, we hope our study will provide evidence to support their establishment and the employment of more GPs by medical schools.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Humairah Zainal ◽  
Helen Elizabeth Smith

Abstract Background: Singapore needs more family doctors to care for its ageing population and their chronic conditions. To boost the recruitment of doctors within primary care, we need to better understand medical students’ attitudes and experience of General Practice and Family Medicine. While many studies have explored the facilitators and barriers to teaching undergraduate medical students in this field of medicine from the perspectives of GP teachers and trainers, few have examined students’ exposure to primary care in medical schools. Although there are works on factors influencing students’ attitudes towards primary care careers, the roles of medical schools, professional bodies and state institutions tend to be discussed independently of one another. This article explores medical students’ perceptions towards careers in primary care and how different stakeholders might collaborate in strengthening the medical school experience. Methods: Six focus groups involving 54 students from three medical schools in Singapore were conducted. Discussions focussed on their primary care experience, their professional and career aspirations, and perceptions towards the opportunities and challenges of primary care careers. Thematic analysis was used to interpret the qualitative data. Results: 15 key themes emerged from the discussions; 10 reflected key concerns of pursuing primary care careers whereas 5 others highlighted their positive aspects. The former include society’s perceptions of primary care professions as sub-standard, specialists’ negative attitudes towards family doctors, the emphasis on the lifestyle benefits of primary care careers rather than their professional characteristics, mundane case mix, limited professional opportunities, lack of continuity of care, limited consultation time, low remuneration, need for business acumen, and conflicts created by business in clinical care. However, the respondents also articulated positive views, including its lifestyle benefits, autonomy of private practice and better patient care, opportunities for entrepreneurialism and a portfolio career, breadth of clinical problems presented, and an improved future for General Practice and Family Medicine. Conclusion: The findings demonstrate that coordinated initiatives from multiple stakeholders would help to increase the attractiveness of primary care as a career choice among students. Improvements in the medical school experience will significantly enhance the prestige of General Practice and Family Medicine.


2020 ◽  
Vol 70 (suppl 1) ◽  
pp. bjgp20X711281
Author(s):  
Jonathan White

BackgroundMost patients are cared for in the community by GPs, and workforce planning for the UK NHS suggests that 50% of medical school graduates need to train as GPs. While there is pressure on medical schools to provide more student teaching in general practice, general practice must be prepared for this increase in workload and teachers should have appropriate training.AimThis study examined the influence that teachers as role models can have on the development and career choices of medical students and whether GPs who teach medical students might benefit from assistance in developing positive attributes.MethodA literature search was carried out. Relevant papers were those that examined the influence of a doctor as teacher role model for medical students, both in assisting in professional development and clinical skills, and in influencing career choice.ResultsThe review identified eleven papers. There was evidence of association between a student having an influential role model as teacher and choosing specialty training in that area, although evidence of a causative connection is less convincing. A recurring theme is the recommendation that teachers should be aware of the influence they can have as role models, both positive and negative.ConclusionAs medical student teaching moves into general practice GPs who teach will need to be helped to understand and develop positive role model attributes, to promote general practice as an attractive career to the students. Further research needs to identify the extent of assistance required and whether medical schools are prepared for this extra responsibility.


1983 ◽  
Vol 58 (12) ◽  
pp. 934-40
Author(s):  
L Z Nieman ◽  
J G Jones

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document