Perspectives of Third-Year Medical Students Toward Their Surgical Clerkship and a Surgical Career

Goldin, Steven B.; Wahi, Monika M.; Wiegand, Lucas R.; Carpenter, Heather L.; Borgman, Heather A.; LaCivita Nixon, Lois; Rosemurgy, Alexander S.; Karl, Richard C.

doi:10.1016/j.jss.2006.10.002

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Volume 142, Issue 1 , Pages 7-12, September 2007

Perspectives of Third-Year Medical Students Toward Their Surgical Clerkship and a Surgical Career

Steven B. Goldin, M.D., Ph.D., F.A.C.S.
- Department of Surgery, University of South Florida College of Medicine, Tampa, Florida
- To whom correspondence and reprint requests should be addressed at Department of Surgery, University of South Florida College of Medicine, 12901 Bruce B. Downs Blvd., Tampa, FL 33612.
Monika M. Wahi, M.P.H.
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of South Florida College of Public Health and Johnnie B. Byrd Sr. Alzheimer’s Center and Research Institute, Tampa, Florida
Lucas R. Wiegand, B.S.
- Department of Surgery, University of South Florida College of Medicine, Tampa, Florida
Heather L. Carpenter, B.S.
- Department of Surgery, University of South Florida College of Medicine, Tampa, Florida
Heather A. Borgman, A.A.S.
- Department of Surgery, University of South Florida College of Medicine, Tampa, Florida
Lois LaCivita Nixon, Ph.D., M.Litt., M.P.H.
- Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Medical Ethics and Humanities, University of South Florida College of Medicine, Tampa, Florida
Alexander S. Rosemurgy II, M.D., F.A.C.S.
- Department of Surgery, University of South Florida College of Medicine, Tampa, Florida
Richard C. Karl, M.D., F.A.C.S.
- Department of Surgery, University of South Florida College of Medicine, Tampa, Florida

Received 6 January 2006

Introduction

A deficit of surgeons currently exists in the health care workforce. We have designed a study that identifies predictors of students choosing a career in surgery. First, we conducted two feasibility studies, and on the basis of these data, designed a third study for addressing our specific aims. The design and one-year results for the new study are provided here.

Methods

For the feasibility studies, students participating in the third-year surgery clerkship at our institution were asked to complete surveys using two different study designs. For the new study, which began in June 2005, students complete surveys covering domains of interest at the beginning of the clerkship and at weekly intervals throughout the clerkship, and will be providing match results.

Results

The feasibility studies offered insight into ways to improve our study design. In the first year of this multi-year study, 93 students participated (response rate = 77%). Forty-five students were women (48%), and the average age was 26.09 (sd 2.85). Proportion of students rating general surgery or a surgery subspecialty in their top three choices for a career increased over the course of the clerkship by 24.7% (n = 32, 34.4% at baseline; n = 55, 59.1% at end of clerkship). Seventy-one students (76.3%) reported having a meaningful experience on the clerkship, and 30 (32.3%) received honors grades.

Conclusion

Our study design benefitted from the knowledge we gained from our feasibility studies. We look forward to achieving the necessary sample size in the next several years to report the final results of this study.

Key Words: medical education, career choice, clinical clerkship, quality of life