Undergraduate medical students’ experience in general practice

Abstract

This paper provides evidence that general practice in Ireland is a setting in which medical students can both encounter a wide range of clinical problems and engage in active learning processes.

Impact of family medicine clerkships in undergraduate medical education: a systematic review

“…Twenty-six studies reported students’ evaluation of the quality of the FM clerkship in several countries such as the USA, 28 38 43–47 the UK, 39 48–51 Germany, 52 53 Austria, 30 54 Israel, 55 56 Slovenia, 40 57 Ireland, 58 Pakistan, 59 Sweden, 34 Saudi Arabia, 36 South Africa 60 and Australia. 61 Nineteen (73%) studies used evaluation questionnaires, 30 34 36 38 39 40 46 47 49 50 52–57 59–61 two interviews 39 51 and three focus groups, 39 56 60 either alone or in combination with questionnaires, while six studies used students’ patient encounter or activity logs.…”

“… 61 Nineteen (73%) studies used evaluation questionnaires, 30 34 36 38 39 40 46 47 49 50 52–57 59–61 two interviews 39 51 and three focus groups, 39 56 60 either alone or in combination with questionnaires, while six studies used students’ patient encounter or activity logs. 28 43–45 48 58 The questionnaires used Likert or similar rating scales to assess satisfaction of students and most of them included open-ended questions. They were self-developed based on previous literature, local experience and clerkship’s learning objectives.…”

“…The most commonly cited satisfactory aspects of FM clerkships were exposure to a variety of health problems including acute and chronic problems, preventive and continuity visits, 39 44 45 51 58 60 61 dealing with undifferentiated symptoms and managing common health problems, 36 50 52 56 59–61 making holistic assessment of patients considering the psychosocial aspects of the disease, 39 50 51 56 60 learning communication and physical examination skills, 39 45 50–52 56 59 60 as well as about the organisation of primary care, its team and the role of FPs. 36 39 56 57 60 Learning experiences in FM clerkships were reported as complementary and reinforcing to those in ambulatory care internal medicine and paediatrics.…”

“…Studies reported from countries with a well-established clinical and academic discipline of FM such as the Netherlands, UK, Ireland and the USA, 32 47 49 50 58 64 65 as well as from countries with a mostly hospital-based/oriented healthcare system with no clearly defined complementary roles between specialists and generalists, such as Pakistan, Hong-Kong, Turkey and Germany. 33 59 63 66 67 Although all quantitative studies except for one 67 report inferential statistics, only two performed some multivariable analysis on career intentions/choices including gender and attitudes.…”

The impact of family medicine clerkships in undergraduate medical education: a systematic review

“…Satisfaction with the teaching and learning experience Twenty-six studies reported students' evaluation of the quality of the FM clerkship in several countries such as the USA, 28 38 43-47 the UK, 39 48-51 Germany, 52 53 Austria, 30 54 Israel, 55 56 Slovenia, 40 57 Ireland, 58 Pakistan, 59 Sweden, 34 Saudi Arabia, 36 South Africa 60 and Australia. 61 Nineteen (73%) studies used evaluation questionnaires, 30 39 51 and three focus groups, 39 56 60 either alone or in combination with questionnaires, while six studies used students' patient encounter or activity logs.…”