Background: While the importance of medical students' demographic characteristics in influencing the scope and location of their future practice is recognized, these data are not systematically collected in Canada. This study aimed to characterize and compare the demographics of Canadian medical students with the Canadian population. Methods: Through an online survey, delivered in 2018, medical students at 14 English-speaking Canadian medical schools provided their age, sex, gender identity, ethnicity, educational background, and rurality of the area they grew up in. Respondents also provided information on parental income, occupation, and education as markers of socioeconomic status. Data were compared to the 2016 Canadian Census. Results: A total of 1388 students responded to the survey, representing a response rate of 16.6%. Most respondents identified as women (63.1%) and were born after 1989 (82.1%). Respondents were less likely, compared to the Canadian Census population, to identify as black (1.7% vs 6.4%) (P < 0.001) or Aboriginal (3.5% vs. 7.4%) (P < 0.001), and have grown up in a rural area (6.4% vs. 18.7%) (P < 0.001). Respondents had higher socioeconomic status, indicated by parental education (29.0% of respondents' parents had a master's or doctoral degree, compared to 6.6% of Canadians aged 45-64), occupation (59.7% of respondents' parents were high-level managers or professionals, compared to 19.2% of Canadians aged 45-64), and income (62.9% of respondents grew up in households with income >$100,000/year, compared to 32.4% of Canadians). Assessment of non-response bias showed that our sample was representative of all students at English-speaking Canadian medical schools with respect to age, though a higher proportion of respondents were female. Additionally, there were no differences between early and late respondents with respect to ethnicity, rurality, and parental income, occupation, and education. Conclusions: Canadian medical students have different socioeconomic characteristics compared to the Canadian population. Collecting and analyzing these characteristics can inform evidence-based admissions policies.
Purpose: Rural and remote regions of Canada struggle to attract and retain an adequate healthcare workforce to provide the healthcare needed by their local residents. The purpose of this systematic review is to explore current literature that has analyzed strategies for recruitment and retention of physicians to rural and remote regions in Canada. Methods: Scopus and PubMed were searched for articles. To be included in the review, the titles yielded from the initial search had to be in English and meet one of the inclusion criteria: (1) address rural and/or remote healthcare, (2) focus on medical students or physicians, and (3) discuss recruitment or retention strategies. Titles were excluded that discussed non-OECD countries, or that were not original journal articles. The final sample of articles were analyzed by both reviewers for content and emerging themes. Summary of Results and Conclusion: The initial search yielded a total of 3397 titles for review. After applying criteria described above, 35 articles remained for review. A variety of recruitment and retention themes were identified targeting physicians before, during, and after their medical education. The most effective strategies consistently appear to be those aimed before medical education, specifically admitting medical students who have a rural background. This review aims to provide a summary of the currently available research to assist with evidence-based decision making to increase supply and retention of rural physicians.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.