Non-graduate and graduate entry medical students attitudes to psychiatry

2013 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 245-254 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. M. Pillay ◽  
F. Sundram ◽  
D. Mullins ◽  
N. Rizvi ◽  
T. Grant ◽  
...  

ObjectiveGraduate entry medical students’ views of psychiatry may differ from those of school leavers. This study hypothesised that (i) exposure to a psychiatry attachment is associated with a positive change in attitudes towards psychiatry in both graduate entry and non-graduate entry students, (ii) graduate entry students exhibit a more positive attitude to psychiatry compared to non-graduate entry students and (iii) graduate entry students are more interested in a career in psychiatry than non-graduate entry students.MethodsIn this study 247 medical students (118 females and 129 males) completing their psychiatry rotation were invited to complete questionnaires examining career choice, attitudes to psychiatry and career attractiveness for a range of specialties including surgery, medicine, general practice and psychiatry before and after their psychiatry attachment. Questionnaires were distributed prior to commencement of their attachment and redistributed on the final day of the attachment.ResultsOf the 165 participants in the study, 75 students entered medicine via the traditional route (without a primary degree), 49 entered via the graduate entry programme and 41 had a primary degree. Overall, medical students displayed positive attitudes towards psychiatry. However, while there was an improvement in attitudes towards psychiatry and the career attractiveness of psychiatry on completion of the rotation, no differences were found between graduate and non-graduate entry students. Psychiatry and general practice had lower ratings for career attractiveness than other specialities. No significant changes were found in the first and second choice of specialty.ConclusionOur results show that improvements in attitude and career attractiveness do not necessarily correlate with increased choice of psychiatry as a specialty. Graduate entry has been considered a possible opportunity for increasing recruitment in psychiatry but our results suggest that this may not be the case. Follow-up studies are required to determine whether career attractiveness correlates with future career choice.

1978 ◽  
Vol 23 (8) ◽  
pp. 541-547 ◽  
Author(s):  
W.O. Mccormick ◽  
G. Voineskos

Medical students' views of the subjects: Psychiatry, Neurology and Surgery were studied before and after a nine week course which included Psychiatry and Neurology. Surgery was not being taught and was regarded as a control subject. Visual analogue measures of each subject as a career possibility, its importance and its interest were obtained in addition to a ranking for career choice of eight specialties. In addition, students' attitudes to psychiatrists, neurologists and surgeons (as control) were studied using semantic differential scores. The scores on the subjects showed changes favourable to Psychiatry after teaching which were not paralleled in Neurology or Surgery. The semantic differential scores clearly discriminated the three specialists; there were small changes after teaching but the broad differences in attitude to the specialists remained. Some evidence is presented that the more favourable changes towards Psychiatry were related to the quality and intensity of teaching.


1986 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 457-460 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Sivakumar ◽  
Greg Wilkinson ◽  
Brian K. Toone ◽  
Steven Greer

SynopsisThe significantly favourable changes in medical students' general attitudes to psychiatry which we found after their 8-week clerkship in psychiatry and at the end of their clinical curriculum were not maintained at the end of their first post-graduate year. Three of their specific attitudes to psychiatry changed significantly in an unfavourable direction over this 2-year period. Our findings suggest that, while favourable changes in students' specific attitudes to psychiatry can be found following a clerkship, these attitudes do not seem to endure and, in some cases, they later become less favourable. The results are discussed with reference to the relationships between undergraduate medical training in psychiatry, attitudes to psychiatry, and subsequent career choice, particularly general practice.


2013 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 196 ◽  
Author(s):  
Homayoun Amini ◽  
Yasaman Moghaddam ◽  
Ali-Akbar Nejatisafa ◽  
Sara Esmaeili ◽  
Hosein Kaviani ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 6-6
Author(s):  
Sarah Marrs ◽  
Jennifer Inker ◽  
Madeline McIntyre ◽  
Leland Waters ◽  
Tracey Gendron

Abstract Senior mentoring programs have been established that provide medical students exposure to a community-dwelling older adult mentor. The goal of these programs is to expose students to healthy older adults, increase knowledge of geriatrics, and prepare them to care for an aging population. However, even while participating in a senior mentoring program, health professions students still demonstrate some discriminatory language towards older adults (e.g., Gendron, Inker, & Welleford, 2018). In fact, research suggests ageist practices occur, intentionally or not, among all health professions and within assisted living and long-term care facilities (e.g., Bowling, 1999; Dobbs et al., 2008; Kane & Kane, 2005). There is reason to believe that how we feel about other older adults is a reflection of how we feel about ourselves as aging individuals. As part of an evaluation of a Senior Mentoring program, we found that students’ attitudes towards older adults were not significantly improved (t (92) = .38, p = .70). To further explore this, we collected subsequent qualitative data. Specifically, we asked students to respond to the open-ended prompt before and after completing their senior mentoring program: How do you feel about your own aging? Our findings have revealed just how complex students’ views towards aging and elderhood are, pointing to a need to develop a theoretical framework for how these views are formed. Thus, the results of this qualitative grounded theory study illustrate the stages of development medical students’ progress through as they come to accept themselves as aging humans.


Author(s):  
Caitlin R. Semsarian ◽  
Gabrielle Rigney ◽  
Peter A. Cistulli ◽  
Yu Sun Bin

University students consistently report poor sleep. We conducted a before-and-after study to evaluate the impact of an online 10-week course on undergraduate students’ sleep knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours at 6-month follow-up. Data were collected via baseline course surveys (August–September 2020) and follow-up surveys distributed via email (February–March 2021). n = 212 students completed baseline surveys and n = 75 (35%) completed follow-up. Students retained to follow-up possessed higher baseline sleep knowledge and received higher course grades. At the 6-month follow-up, sleep knowledge had increased (mean score out of 5: 3.0 vs. 4.2, p < 0.001). At baseline, 85% of students aimed to increase their sleep knowledge and 83% aimed to improve their sleep. At follow-up, 91% reported being more knowledgeable and 37% reported improved sleep. A novel Stages of Change item revealed that 53% of students’ attitudes towards their sleep behaviours had changed from baseline. There was a reduction in sleep latency at follow-up (mean 33.3 vs. 25.6 min, p = 0.015), but no change in the total Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index score. In summary, completion of an online course led to increased sleep and circadian knowledge and changed sleep attitudes, with no meaningful change in sleep behaviours. Future interventions should consider components of behavioural change that go beyond the knowledge–attitudes–behaviour continuum.


2020 ◽  
pp. 103985622097193
Author(s):  
Sarah E Gordon ◽  
Leah A Kininmonth ◽  
Giles Newton-Howes ◽  
Gordon L Purdie ◽  
Tracey Gardiner

Objective: To assess and compare attitudes of medical students in response to two service-user-led anti-stigma and discrimination education programmes. Method: Two programmes, consistent with the key elements of effective contact-based anti-stigma and discrimination education programmes for healthcare providers, were delivered to medical students in their penultimate and final year: a more intensive version of the programme in 2015/2016 and a briefer programme in 2016/2017. Attitudes were assessed using the Recovery Attitudes Questionnaire (RAQ) and the Opening Minds Stigma Scale for Health Care Providers (OMS-HC-20) at the beginning and end of their final year. Results: There were no significant differences between the years in initial scores on either scale. Both cohorts showed statistically significant reductions in scores on both scales after completion of the programme, indicating overall improvements in students’ attitudes with reductions in stigma, and more positive attitudes towards recovery of those in mental distress. The more intensive programme led to significantly greater improvement in reductions in stigma than the less intensive programme. Conclusion: Findings support the need for contact-based anti-stigma and discrimination education programmes for medical students that are both intensive and repeated over time.


1970 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 161-174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lave Ohlsson

ABSTRACT Clearances of inulin and para-aminohippurate (PAH) were studied before as well as three to nine years (average 5½) after surgery in 35 cases of primary hyperparathyroidism. The preoperative inulin clearance ranged from 18 to 105 (average 67) and the PAH clearance from 61 to 666 (349) ml/min/1.73 m2 BSA. In the follow-up studies clearances of inulin and PAH were, on the whole, well maintained both in subjects with normal as well as in cases showing depressed clearance values before surgery. In fact, a slight but statistically significant increase of inulin clearance was demonstrated in the material as a whole, whereas no significant change occurred in PAH clearance. The renal concentrating capacity was estimated before and after operation in 22 of the patients. An increase was almost regularly observed postoperatively but the concentrating capacity remained subnormal in almost half of the subjects studied. The changes in the concentrating capacity and clearances of inulin and PAH did not always run parallel. The renal clearance of phosphate was studied simultaneously with inulin and PAH clearances. Phosphate clearance decreased after surgery concomitantly with an elevation of serum phosphorus. However, restoration to the normal was not always obtained. Arterial hypertension was present in 40 per cent of the patients before and/or after surgery. Only grade I-II eye ground changes were found. Blood pressure was easily controlled by hypotensive drugs. A spontaneous disappearance or a decrease in the number of kidney stones was demonstrated radiologically at the follow-up studies in almost half of the patients. In only two subjects were additional kidney stones found. It is concluded that, following surgical treatment of hyperparathyroidism, the long-term outcome regarding renal function may be more favourable than has hitherto been thought.


2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 244 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Crowley ◽  
Lauren Ball ◽  
Dug Yeo Han ◽  
Anne-Thea McGill ◽  
Bruce Arroll ◽  
...  

INTRODUCTION: Improvements in individuals' nutrition behaviour can improve risk factors and outcomes associated with lifestyle-related chronic diseases. AIM: This study describes and compares New Zealand medical students, general practice registrars and general practitioners' (GPs') attitudes towards incorporating nutrition care into practice, and self-perceived skills in providing nutrition care. METHODS: A total of 183 New Zealand medical students, 51 general practice registrars and 57 GPs completed a 60-item questionnaire investigating attitudes towards incorporating nutrition care into practice and self-perceived skills in providing nutrition care. Items were scored using a 5-point Likert scale. Factor analysis was conducted to group questionnaire items and a generalised linear model compared differences between medical students, general practice registrars and GPs. RESULTS: All groups indicated that incorporating nutrition care into practice is important. GPs displayed more positive attitudes than students towards incorporating nutrition in routine care (p<0.0001) and performing nutrition recommendations (p<0.0001). General practice registrars were more positive than students towards performing nutrition recommendations (p=0.004), specified practices (p=0.037), and eliciting behaviour change (p=0.024). All groups displayed moderate confidence towards providing nutrition care. GPs were more confident than students in areas relating to wellness and disease (p<0.0001); macronutrients (p=0.030); micronutrients (p=0.010); and women, infants and children (p<0.0001). DISCUSSION: New Zealand medical students, general practice registrars and GPs have positive attitudes and moderate confidence towards incorporating nutrition care into practice. It is possible that GPs' experience providing nutrition care contributes to greater confidence. Strategies to facilitate medical students developing confidence in providing nutrition care are warranted. KEYWORDS: General practitioner; health knowledge, attitudes, practice; medical education; nutrition therapy


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