Effect of an intercalated research degree on general practice careers: a matched cohort study

ABSTRACT INTRODUCTIONIntercalated degrees are one of the most focused undergraduate research training activities offered to medical students worldwide. The effect of intercalating on actual career choices has not been previously investigated. AIMTo examine the effect of obtaining an intercalated research degree on choosing general practice as a career. METHODSThis was a retrospective, matched cohort study of intercalating students at the University of Otago, New Zealand (1995–2008). Medical students who completed the intercalated Bachelor of Medical Sciences with Honours, BMedSc(Hons), degree were retrospectively identified. Gender- and graduation year-matched controls were identified from a publicly available graduate database in a 1:1 ratio. MEDLINE® and Google Scholar-indexed publications resulting from BMedSc(Hons) projects were determined using standardised search criteria. Speciality choice was obtained from online lists of registered doctors. RESULTSOver the 14-year period, 99 (3.9%) students completed an intercalated degree with a publication rate of 36.4%. Of these, 42 (42.4%) were female and over two-thirds (68.7%) of projects were laboratory-based. The median follow-up period after graduation was 14 years (range 7.7–21.7 years). The congruence between students’ BMedSc(Hons) research subject area and clinical speciality was 9.1%. Sixteen (16.2%) intercalating students chose general practice as a career, whereas 83 (83.8%) chose 19 different hospital-based specialties. Compared to controls, students who completed an intercalated degree were significantly less likely to pursue a career in general practice (odds ratio 0.37; 95% confidence interval=0.18 – 0.77; P=0.007). DISCUSSIONThe present study findings suggest that completing an intercalated degree is associated with lower odds of pursuing a career in general practice. Future research should explore reasons for this observation to help develop strategies to promote primary care and general practice careers among medical graduates, including those interested in research careers.

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Does disaster affect immigrant victims more than non-immigrant victims in Dutch general practice: a matched cohort study

Journal of Public Health ◽

10.1007/s10389-008-0197-6 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 17 (1) ◽

pp. 27-32 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Rik J. H. Soeteman ◽

C. Joris Yzermans ◽

Peter M. M. Spreeuwenberg ◽

Tina Dorn ◽

Jan J. Kerssens ◽

...

Keyword(s):

General Practice ◽

Cohort Study ◽

Matched Cohort ◽

Matched Cohort Study

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Advanced Access scheduling in general practice and use of primary care: a Danish population-based matched cohort study

BJGP Open ◽

10.3399/bjgpopen20x101091 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (5) ◽

pp. bjgpopen20X101091

Author(s):

Maria Bang ◽

Henrik Schou Pedersen ◽

Bodil Hammer Bech ◽

Claus Høstrup Vestergaard ◽

Jannik Falhof ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Primary Care ◽

General Practice ◽

Cohort Study ◽

Population Based ◽

Matched Cohort ◽

Face To Face ◽

Matched Cohort Study ◽

Adjusted Incidence Rate ◽

Advanced Access ◽

The Impact

BackgroundAdvanced access scheduling (AAS) allows patients to receive care from their GP at the time chosen by the patient. AAS has shown to increase the accessibility to general practice, but little is known about how AAS implementation affects the use of in-hours and out-of-hours (OOH) services.AimTo describe the impact of AAS on the use of in-hours and OOH services in primary care.Design & settingA population-based matched cohort study using Danish register data.MethodA total of 161 901 patients listed in 33 general practices with AAS were matched with 287 837 reference patients listed in 66 reference practices without AAS. Outcomes of interest were use of daytime face-to-face consultations, and use of OOH face-to-face and phone consultations in a 2-year period preceding and following AAS implementation.ResultsNo significant differences were seen between AAS practices and reference practices. During the year following AAS implementation, the number of daytime face-to-face consultations was 3% (adjusted incidence rate ratio [aIRR] = 1.03; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.99 to 1.07) higher in the AAS practices compared with the number in the reference practices. Patients listed with an AAS practice had 2% (aIRR = 0.98; 95% CI = 0.92 to 1.04) fewer OOH phone consultations and 6% (aIRR = 0.94; 95% CI = 0.86 to 1.02) fewer OOH face-to-face consultations compared with patients listed with a reference practice.ConclusionThis study showed no significant differences following AAS implementation. However, a trend was seen towards slightly higher use of daytime primary care and lower use of OOH primary care.

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Physical and psychological co-morbidity in irritable bowel syndrome: a matched cohort study using the General Practice Research Database

Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics ◽

10.1111/j.1365-2036.2006.03044.x ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 24 (5) ◽

pp. 879-886 ◽

Cited By ~ 44

Author(s):

R. JONES ◽

R. LATINOVIC ◽

J. CHARLTON ◽

M. GULLIFORD

Keyword(s):

General Practice ◽

Irritable Bowel Syndrome ◽

Cohort Study ◽

General Practice Research Database ◽

Practice Research ◽

Research Database ◽

Matched Cohort ◽

Matched Cohort Study ◽

Co Morbidity ◽

Irritable Bowel

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Impact and longevity of measles-associated immune suppression: a matched cohort study using data from the THIN general practice database in the UK

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2017-021465 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 8 (11) ◽

pp. e021465 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Kartini Gadroen ◽

Caitlin N Dodd ◽

Gwen M C Masclee ◽

Maria A J de Ridder ◽

Daniel Weibel ◽

...

Keyword(s):

General Practice ◽

Cohort Study ◽

Infectious Diseases ◽

Incidence Rate ◽

Population Based ◽

General Practitioner Practice ◽

Health Improvement ◽

Matched Cohort ◽

Matched Cohort Study ◽

The Uk

ObjectiveTo test the hypothesis that measles infection increases the incidence of non-measles infectious diseases over a prolonged period of time.DesignA population-based matched cohort study.Data sourcesThis study examined children aged 1–15 years in The Health Improvement Network UK general practice medical records database. Participants included 2228 patients diagnosed with measles between 1990 and 2014, which were matched on age, sex, general practitioner practice and calendar year with 19 930 children without measles. All controls had received at least one measles vaccination. Children with a history of immune-compromising conditions or with immune-suppressive treatment were excluded.Primary outcome measuresIncidence rate ratio (IRR) of infections, anti-infective prescriptions and all-cause hospitalisations following measles in predetermined periods using multivariate analysis to adjust for confounding variables.ResultsIn children with measles, the incidence rate for non-measles infectious disease was significantly increased in each time period assessed up to 5 years postmeasles: 43% in the first month (IRR: 1.43; 95% CI 1.22 to 1.68), 22% from month one to the first year (IRR: 1.22; 95% CI 1.14 to 1.31), 10% from year 1 to 2.5 years (IRR: 1.10; 95% CI 1.02 to 1.19) and 15% (IRR: 1.15; 95% CI 1.06 to 1.25) in years 2.5 to 5 years of follow-up. Children with measles were more than three times as likely to receive an anti-infective prescription in the first month and 15%–24% more likely between the first month and 5 years. The rate of hospitalisation in children with measles was increased only in the month following diagnosis but not thereafter (IRR: 2.83; 95% CI 1.72 to 4.67).ConclusionFollowing measles, children had increased rates of diagnosed infections, requiring increased prescribing of antimicrobial therapies. This population-based matched cohort study supports the hypothesis that measles has a prolonged impact on host resistance to non-measles infectious diseases.

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