A Survey of Medical Oncology Training in Australian Medical Schools: Pilot Study

Abstract

BackgroundOncology is a rapidly evolving field with continuous advancements in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Therefore, it is important that medical students are provided with the knowledge and experience required to care for oncology patients and enable them to diagnose and manage toxicities of novel therapeutic agents.ObjectiveThis study was performed to understand the medical students’ perspective of the oncology education provided in universities across Australia and identify areas of education that could potentially be modified or improved to ultimately attract more students to a career in oncology.MethodsThis pilot cross-sectional study consisted of an 18-question survey that was submitted online to medical students in their final year and interns rotating to the Tamworth Hospital.ResultsThe survey was completed by 94 fifth-year medical students and interns. Oncology was taught both theoretically and clinically for 68% (63/93) of participants, and 48% (44/92) had an exclusive oncology rotation. Both theoretical and clinical oncology assessments were conducted for only 21% (19/92) of participants. Overall, 42% (38/91) of participants were satisfied with their oncology education, and 78% (40/51) were dissatisfied with the number of oncology teaching hours. The importance of a career in oncology was rated as low by 46% (41/90) of participants.ConclusionsThis pilot study indicates that there are potential areas to improve oncology teaching in Australian universities. The majority of surveyed students were dissatisfied with the number of teaching hours they receive in oncology. More global assessment of students and/or interns from other Australian institutes may yield further useful information.

Inspiring the future generation of oncologists: a UK-wide study of medical students’ views towards oncology

“…Students were unsatisfied with oncology teaching. Findings are consistent worldwide, with students reporting limited oncology specialty exposure [ 9 , 27 ]; teaching dissatisfaction [ 28 ]; and poor confidence in oncology care [ 9 , 29 , 30 ]. Newly-qualified doctors report limited undergraduate exposure to cancer patients, and lack of cancer care knowledge [ 6 , 31 ].…”

“…Scarce data is available on medical students’ perspectives on current undergraduate oncology teaching with data almost non-existent for the UK [ 28 , 42 – 47 ]. To our knowledge, this is the first national cross-sectional survey of UK medical students’ views in oncology.…”

Medical Student Perspectives on Undergraduate Oncology Education in the UK

“…Despite this, medical schools typically offer limited exposure to oncology within their curriculum, often limited to a couple of weeks throughout the entire course [10,11]. Oncology is usually taught in the context of common cancer subtypes and rarely are the different treatment modalities in oncology explored in any detail [12]. Previous studies have shown that one teaching event in radiation oncology increased student confidence during oncology placements, which highlights that greater explanation of cancer care allows students to benefit from clinical attachments in oncology [13].…”

<p>A Thorough Analysis of the Current State of Cancer Education in Medical Schools and Application of Experimental Teaching Techniques and Their Efficacy</p>

“…109 Additionally, 78% of Australian medical students reported dissatisfaction with the number of dedicated oncology teaching hours. 110 However, efforts have been made to implement some standardized curricula, with preliminary results indicating adequate direction to acquire necessary competencies, stimulus for learning opportunities, and positive contributions to participant development. 75 Reviews of European medical schools show similar results.…”