Challenges facing postgraduate training in family medicine in Saudi Arabia: Patterns and solutions

Al-Khaldi, Yahia M; Al-Dawood, Kasim M; Albar, Adnan A.; Al-Shmmari, Sulaiman A; AlAteeq, Mohammed A; Al-Meqbel, Tariq I; Al-Yahya, Omar A; Al-Dayel, Mohammed A; Alghamdi, Mohammed S; Al-Badr, Badr O

doi:10.4103/1658-600x.131752

Cited by 12 publications

(17 citation statements)

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“…The reasons for this shortage are several and include but not limited to the small number of postgraduate training centers in MOH (42 PHCC) and the restricted number of training positions because of the inadequate number of trainers in FM at these training centers as reported in the previous study. [ 8 ]…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Some studies from KSA have shown that more attention is required at all levels of FM in order to produce an adequate number of FPs and improve both the academic aspects and the services provided by FM in the country. [ 6 7 8 9 10 11 ] A few studies have been conducted to evaluate FM in KSA. However, there is a need for a comprehensive national survey to analyze the current situation in KSA and draw up a strategic plan to achieve the national vision of 2020 in FM.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Family medicine practice in Saudi Arabia: The current situation and Proposed Strategic Directions Plan 2020

Al-Khaldi¹,

Alghamdi²,

Al-Mogbil³

et al. 2017

J Fam Community Med

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OBJECTIVES:The objectives of this study were to assess the current situation of the teaching and training of undergraduate and postgraduate programs in family medicine in KSA, assess the current practice of family medicine, and draw a roadmap to achieve Saudi vision 2020.MATERIALS AND METHODS:This study was conducted with the support and collaboration of the Primary Health Care Department of the Ministry of Health, Saudi Arabia, and World Health Organization (EMRO) in November 2015. Based on the literature review of previous studies conducted for similar purposes, relevant questionnaires were developed. These consisted of four forms, each of which was directed at a different authority to achieve the above-mentioned objectives. Data of all questionnaires were coded, entered, and analyzed using SPSS version 16.RESULTS:There are 2282 primary health-care centers (PHCCs), 60% of which are in rural areas. More than half of the PHCCs have a laboratory and more than one-third have a Radiology Department. Out of the 6107 physicians, 636 are family physicians (10%). All medical colleges have a family medicine department with a total staff of 170 medical teachers. Thirteen departments run family medicine courses of 4–8 weeks' duration for students. Fourteen colleges have internship programs in family medicine and four colleges have postgraduate centers for family medicine (27%). There are 95 training centers for Saudi Board (Saudi Board of Family Medicine [SBFM]) and 68 centers for Saudi Diploma (Saudi Diploma of Family Medicine [SDFM]). The total number of trainers was 241, while the total trainees were 756 in SBFM and 137 in SDFM.CONCLUSIONS:This survey showed that there is a shortage of qualified family physicians in all health sectors in Saudi Arabia as a result of the lack of a strategic plan for the training of family physicians. A national strategic plan with specific objectives and an explicit budget are necessary to deal with this shortage and improve the quality of health-care services at PHCCs.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Family medicine practice in Saudi Arabia: The current situation and Proposed Strategic Directions Plan 2020

Al-Khaldi¹,

Alghamdi²,

Al-Mogbil³

et al. 2017

J Fam Community Med

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“…In Saudi Arabia, FM specialty is facing a lot of challenges; these challenges include the inefficient and incomplete health records in hospitals and medical training centers, the lack of skilled trainers in the FM field for effective teaching of medical students, [8], in addition to the shortage of FPs which increase the workload and the burnout of the available physicians, and in turn decreases the time they have to teach medical residents (19,39). This situation was illustrated in a previous Saudi study which showed that all Saudi medical colleges have a FM department with a total staff of only 170 teachers (21).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…That is why there is an urgent need to train as many family medicine practitioners as possible to deal with these cases (17). Studies from KSA have shown that more attention is required at all levels of FM in order to produce an adequate number of family physicians to improve the academic aspects and the services provided by FM in the country (18,19,20).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Saudi University Students’ Awareness and Attitude towards Family Medicine Specialty

Desouky¹,

Turkistani²,

Althobaiti³

2018

ME-JFM

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university students' awareness and attitude towards family medicine specialty. AbstractBackground: Worldwide, there is shortage of family medicine (FM) specialists and disinterest of medical students in choosing FM as a career. Saudi Arabia is facing the same problem.Objectives: The aim of this study was to know the magnitude of knowledge and attitude of Saudi medical and non-medical students towards FM specialty.Methods: A cross-sectional study was done on 708 students of Taif University using a self-administered questionnaire about socio-demographic factors, knowledge and attitude towards FM specialty.Results: Medical students showed a significant higher percentage of students who saw that FM specialty has an essential social function, has a pleasant working environment, has a high social status, is an attractive option for a medical students, is an interesting specialty from a research perspective, and is an important specialty in: disease prevention/Health promotion, familyfocused health care, bio-psychosocial focus of health care, collaboration with other sectors, team work, bioethics, and urgent care. Only 6% of medical students chose FM as a future career, and the most common factor influencing the specialty preferences was the good working condition and the quality of life. Female students and older grades showed a significant higher percentage of students choosing FM as a future career. For all participants, the study reflects the bad reputation about FM specialty regarding its status within the medical profession, scientific prestige and salary.Conclusion: Medical students had better knowledge and perception of family medicine compared to non-medical students, but they had low interest in choosing it as a future career.

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“…Differences in satisfaction according to different sectors has been explained by Al-Khaldi et al 8 , who stated that, in Saudi Arabia, postgraduate training in Family Medicine is conducted in 6 different health sectors, i.e., Ministry of Health, Ministry of Defense, Ministry of National Guard, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Higher Education and the private sector. Each one of these sectors has its different agenda, priorities, policies and procedures.…”

Section: Discusson:-mentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of Family Medicine Residents’ Satisfaction Regarding the Half Day Release Course of Family Medicine Program.

Alsharif¹,

Hussein²

2017

IJAR

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Challenges facing postgraduate training in family medicine in Saudi Arabia: Patterns and solutions

Cited by 12 publications

References 1 publication

Family medicine practice in Saudi Arabia: The current situation and Proposed Strategic Directions Plan 2020

Family medicine practice in Saudi Arabia: The current situation and Proposed Strategic Directions Plan 2020

Saudi University Students’ Awareness and Attitude towards Family Medicine Specialty

Assessment of Family Medicine Residents’ Satisfaction Regarding the Half Day Release Course of Family Medicine Program.

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