Abstract
Background
There is currently a chronic shortage of surgeons, particularly cardiac surgeons, in Japan and worldwide. Additionally, the number of female medical students has been increasing worldwide; half of our university’s medical students are females. We assessed the attitudes of medical students regarding preferred lifestyles and specialties, aiming to identify strategies for increasing the number of surgeons in Japan.
Methods
We conducted a questionnaire survey among second- and fifth-year medical students at Aichi Medical University, to assess their career priorities and ideal lifestyles when choosing specialties. In total, 71 second-year (male:female, 36:35) and 55 fifth-year (male:female, 27:28) students were surveyed. Differences were compared between school year and sex.
Results
Few students considered becoming general surgeons (19%) or cardiac surgeons (14%). Most students were more interested in how interesting (92%) and rewarding a particular field (88%) would be, rather than in dedication to work (7%) or career advancement (6%), regardless of school year or sex. Females were particularly concerned about a heavy workload (79% vs 68%) and were less likely to prefer surgery (9% vs 27%) compared with males. The importance of acquiring useful skills (77% vs 95%) and wanting to train in the neighboring Tokai area tended to increase (21% vs 60%) with increasing grade.
Conclusions
Most students had decided their ideal career path in the lower grades and desired controlled lifestyle. To increase the number of surgeons, it is necessary to improve surgeons’ lifestyles, reduce their workloads, develop medical students’ interest in surgery, and ensure development of useful skills.
Commentary: Are Cardiac Surgeons Treating Patients of Lower Socioeconomic Status Differently?