Interventions to improve the well-being of medical learners in Canada: a scoping review

Abstract

C oncerns exist about the impact of medical education on learner well-being. [1][2][3][4] Programs housed within medical schools often address intellectual and occupational well-being, focusing specifically on skills related to learning and working; 5,6 however, well-being is a multidimensional construct. Social, mental, and physical wellbeing have been shown to be negatively affected during undergraduate medical education, 7 with increased prevalence of burnout in residency. 8,9 Poor well-being can affect medical learners across the spectrum of programs, including undergraduate health sciences. 10 The Canadian Federation of Medical Students aims to "train healthier physicians to maximize the productivity and quality of health care services for Canadians." 11 Their strategic directions for 2020-2022 include developing health promoting communities, promoting a positive culture in medical education that prioritizes learner well-being, increasing collaboration within the medical community and optimizing student resources. Despite the growing literature as universities implement services to address the well-being of medical learners, earlier reviews on this topic have not evaluated interventions in Canadian medical schools and have found it difficult to define medical learner well-being. 12,13 The Wellness Innovation Scholarship for Health Professions Education and Health Sciences (WISHES) laboratory at the University of Calgary is taking a holistic approach to medical learner well-being. 14 Based on Nussbaum's human capabilities approach 15 and acknowledging that well-being is multi dimensional, 16 WISHES focuses on measurable outcomes within the domains of mental, physical, occupational,

Disclosure and Double Standards: A Mixed Methods Study of Self-Disclosure of Mental Illness or Addiction Among Medical Learners

“…24 We also learned that our participants scored within a range of poor overall wellbeing, and our findings complement other research which suggests that medical training is a unique risk factor for poor wellbeing which is further compounded by barriers to self-disclosure. 1,2,25,26 Our participants confirmed the persistent double standards and perceived hypocrisy in medical education and that these double standards and fear of disclosure appears to worsen over time. 27 For example, in our study resident OMS-HC scores and qualitative findings demonstrated fear of judgment among medical students become fear of retribution or adverse career consequences for learners.…”

Wellbeing Convene during COVID-19: A pilot intervention for improving wellbeing and social connectedness for staff, students, residents, and faculty

“…Wellbeing interventions are needed to address the complex and broad-ranging issues that members of FoMs may face. While most FoMs excel in addressing students’ cognitive, occupational, and social needs, their mental, emotional, and physical needs are often overlooked [ 16 ].…”

Integrated Holistic Student Affairs: A Personalized, Equitable, Student-Centered Approach to Student Affairs

“…25,26 Similarly, personal counseling is often student-initiated when a life event or other acute stressor threatens the student’s academic progress. 27,28 In these as well as in many other points of interaction with student affairs faculty and staff, the onus of seeking support and coordinating between the various services falls on the student. The limitations of these practices are highlighted by reframing both examples with a proactive approach: being paired with an academic counselor or tutor at the time of enrollment, with the pairing being guided by a thorough handoff from the admissions team that details the specific learning needs with which the student matriculated, and concurrently, being connected with a personal counselor to cultivate skills for addressing stressors originating from the student’s unique complement of lived experiences, which may be heightened during their medical training.…”