Submission ID 77699
| Code | OH-3-4 |
|---|---|
| At the end of this workshop, participants will be able to: | |
| Category | Medical Education |
| Type | Oral |
| Will the presenter be a: | Graduate Student |
| Title | Understanding the Influence of Educational Experiences on Physician Geographic Disposition: A Qualitative Study on Family Physician Perspectives in Canada |
| Background/Purpose | Inequities in accessing primary healthcare have left regions and patient populations across the country underserved. Family physicians have professional autonomy in arranging their professional practice according to their professional and personal interests. Current calls for systems-level intervention do not reflect the potential of "upstream" education interventions to address physician maldistribution. Through this study, we present a qualitative account of family physician descriptions of the influence that their medical education had on their choice of practice location. |
| Methods | A qualitative descriptive study was conducted with 27 Canadian-trained family physicians who practice in Ontario, Canada. Data collection occurred via semi-structured interviews and transcripts were coded and analyzed using an unconstrained descriptive approach. |
| Results | Participants expressed that education experiences were strongly influential to their practice decisions. Practice preferences were shaped through training exposures to patient populations, heightened clinical responsibilities, various practice models and locations, and professional mentorships. Preferences were shaped early in training and were gradually refined as family physicians progressed into residency towards building confidence, competence, and comfort within practices that aligned with identified preferences. Notably, descriptions revealed that the family physician's preferred practice location is intimately tied to their preferred practice scope. |
| Discussion | Health workforce policies and interventions workforce designed to promote equitable access to primary care should leverage the medical education system. Such interventions are potentially most effective early in medical training, while learners are still forming preferences for practice scope and location. |
| Keyword 1 | Access to healthcare |
| Keyword 2 | Medical education |
| Keyword 3 | Health policy |
| Abstract content most relevant to: (check all that apply) | Residency Education
Undergraduate Medical Education |
| Abstract Track - First Choice | Distributed Medical Education |
| Authors | Asiana Elma Asiana Elma Monica Aggarwal Dorothy Bakker Neil Johnston Gina Agarwal Lawrence Grierson |
