Table 3 Comparison of MS cohort responses to matrix questions about career choices
From: The temporal decline of idealism in two cohorts of medical students at one institution
Cohort 1 (MS1/MS3) | Cohort 2 (MS2/MS4) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Items | MS1 T1 | MS1 T2 | MS1 T3 | p | MS2 T2 | MS2 T2 | MS4 T3 | p | |
How important are the following factors in considering your career in medicine? | |||||||||
Opportunities to make a difference in people’s lives | 4.89 | 4.88 | 4.71 | .003** | 4.83 | 4.83 | 4.66 | NS | |
Intellectual climate | 4.41 | 4.41 | 4.23 | .067 | 4.52 | 4.47 | 4.13 | <.001** | |
Desire to do primary care | 3.04 | 3.03 | 3.04 | NS | 2.74 | 2.75 | 2.88 | NS | |
Availability of jobs | 3.55 | 3.54 | 4.26 | <.001** | 3.86 | 3.84 | 3.90 | NS | |
Job security | 3.80 | 3.80 | 4.40 | <.001** | 4.03 | 4.00 | 4.30 | NS | |
Opportunity to help patients who are socially disadvantaged | 4.71 | 4.15 | 3.84 | .024* | 3.89 | 3.90 | 3.51 | .020* | |
Desire to serve my community | 4.42 | 4.39 | 4.23 | .033* | 4.32 | 4.33 | 3.66 | <.001** | |
High income potential | 2.82 | 2.82 | 3.45 | <.001** | 3.36 | 3.32 | 3.25 | NS | |
Job satisfaction | 4.76 | 4.77 | 4.84 | NS | 4.75 | 4.77 | 4.78 | NS | |
Status of physicians | 2.69 | 2.65 | 2.84 | NS | 2.97 | 2.86 | 2.80 | NS | |
How important are the following factors in considering your choice for a specialty? | |||||||||
Income expectations for the specialty | 2.81 | 2.76 | 3.43 | <.001** | 3.27 | 3.23 | 3.15 | NS | |
Amount of education debt I have | 2.81 | 2.83 | 3.30 | .012* | 3.04 | 2.99 | 3.09 | NS | |
Ability to balance my work life with my family responsibilities | 4.37 | 4.38 | 4.53 | NS | 4.62 | 4.60 | 4.44 | NS | |
Content of the specialty | 4.69 | 4.71 | 4.59 | NS | 4.70 | 4.69 | 4.70 | NS | |
Competitiveness of the specialty | 3.13 | 3.11 | 2.91 | NS | 3.07 | 3.06 | 2.74 | .096 | |
Options for fellowship training associated with the specialty | 3.25 | 3.24 | 3.51 | NS | 3.47 | 3.40 | 3.58 | NS | |
Length of residency training associated with the specialty | 3.18 | 3.17 | 3.48 | NS | 3.44 | 3.48 | 2.98 | .007** | |
The lifestyle of the specialty I am considering | 4.20 | 4.20 | 4.36 | NS | 4.42 | 4.38 | 4.16 | .066 | |
Prestige of the specialty I am considering | 2.20 | 2.14 | 2.41 | NS | 2.49 | 2.42 | 2.59 | NS | |
Career workshops and courses | 2.66 | 2.63 | 2.71 | NS | 2.53 | 2.47 | 2.36 | NS | |
Opportunities to do research in this specialty | 2.58 | 2.57 | 3.37 | NS | 2.42 | 2.38 | 3.10 | NS | |
Opportunities to provide care to underserved populations | 3.43 | 3.41 | 3.37 | NS | 3.28 | 3.28 | 3.10 | NS | |
Attitudes toward primary care | |||||||||
I would like to become a primary care doctor in the future | 3.12 | 3.11 | 3.13 | .079 | 2.97 | 3.13 | 2.62 | .036* | |
I am more interested in learning the skills required for my chosen specialty rather than a general set of clinical practice skills. | 2.79 | 2.75 | 2.69 | .001** | 2.82 | 2.69 | 3.45 | .001** | |
Primary care knowledge is useful for all medical students. | 4.75 | 4.75 | 4.70 | NS | 4.68 | 4.70 | 4.75 | NS | |
Primary care should be a patient’s first contact with the health care system. | 4.39 | 4.38 | 4.68 | NS | 4.36 | 4.68 | 4.47 | .007** | |
Medical interviewing is a fundamental tool for all medical students to learn | 4.89 | 4.92 | 4.87 | NS | 4.83 | 4.87 | 4.88 | NS | |
Preventative care knowledge is essential for all medical students to learn. | 4.83 | 4.85 | 4.70 | NS | 4.53 | 4.70 | 4.67 | <.001** | |
It is essential that medical students learn how to best communicate with patients. | 4.89 | 4.91 | 4.89 | NS | 4.86 | 4.89 | 4.87 | NS | |
Primary care doctors mostly manage chronic health problems. | 3.26 | 3.25 | 389 | NS | 3.79 | 3.89 | 3.81 | <.001** | |
It is impossible to be an expert in such a wide field as primary care. | 2.69 | 2.69 | 2.97 | .069 | 3.01 | 2.98 | 3.31 | .001** | |
Primary care is not very intellectually stimulating. | 1.90 | 1.91 | 2.47 | .057 | 2.22 | 2.47 | 2.58 | <.001** | |
Primary care doctors have a large work overload. | 3.63 | 3.63 | 4.15 | NS | 3.95 | 4.15 | 4.05 | <.001** | |
Primary care doctors are poorly valued by the rest of the medical profession. | 3.48 | 3.49 | 3.78 | NS | 3.76 | 3.78 | 3.77 | .036* | |
A primary care doctor is clinically competent to provide most of the health care an individual may require. | 3.96 | 3.94 | 4.36 | .003** | 3.99 | 4.36 | 4.36 | <.001** | |