gms | German Medical Science

Research in Medical Education – Chances and Challenges International Conference

20.05. - 22.05.2009, Heidelberg

Curricula influence on career choice? – a qualitative approach

Meeting Abstract

  • author presenting/speaker Patrizia Calcagno - University of Heidelberg, Department of General Practice and Health Services Research, Heidelberg, Germany
  • author Marco Roos - University of Heidelberg, Department of General Practice and Health Services Research, Heidelberg, Germany
  • author Stefanie Joos - University of Heidelberg, Department of General Practice and Health Services Research, Heidelberg, Germany
  • author Joachim Szecsenyi - University of Heidelberg, Department of General Practice and Health Services Research, Heidelberg, Germany
  • corresponding author Katja Götz - University of Heidelberg, Department of General Practice and Health Services Research, Heidelberg, Germany

Research in Medical Education - Chances and Challenges 2009. Heidelberg, 20.-22.05.2009. Düsseldorf: German Medical Science GMS Publishing House; 2009. Doc09rmeA1

doi: 10.3205/09rme01, urn:nbn:de:0183-09rme019

Published: May 5, 2009

© 2009 Calcagno et al.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/deed.en). You are free: to Share – to copy, distribute and transmit the work, provided the original author and source are credited.


Outline

Abstract

Background: Germany faces a lack of physicians. During the last ten years less and less medical students choose a career as a physician, especially in primary care. Our qualitative approach was to analyse possible reasons in undergraduate general practice curriculum.

Methods: We conducted five focus groups with students (N=21). We built focus groups consisting of first, third and fifth year students. All data were audio-recorded and transcribed and finally analysed by grounded theory and content analyses.

Results: Analyses of data shows that fifth year students have a more positive attitude towards general practice than first and third year students. This is clearly due to the contact students have with undergraduate general practice curriculum during their studies.

Conclusion: There seems to be a link between undergraduate general practice curriculum and positive attitude towards general practice. We recommend early and repetitive contact with general practice curriculum in medical education, and thereby a higher proportion in medical curricula.