Swedish doctors choice of medical speciality and associations with cultural capital and perceived status: a cross-sectional study

Olsson, Caroline; Järnbert-Pettersson, Hans; Ponzer, Sari; Dahlin, Marie; Bexelius, Tomas Sjöberg

doi:10.1186/s12909-019-1691-y

Cited by 8 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Our analysis showed that the MPs in general practice were not in the specialty for its status. These results are congruent with research that has shown that domestically trained physicians in general practice also rank the specialty as having low status [ 38 ]; that they are aware of their specialty’s low status but still are satisfied with their choice [ 8 ]. Not all physicians strive for high-prestige specialties, like surgery [ 8 ].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

Migrant physicians’ choice of employment and the medical specialty general practice: a mixed-methods study

et al. 2021

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Objective In many countries, migrant physicians (MP) tend to fill staff shortages in medical specialties perceived as low status. The aim of this study was to explore aspects that influence MPs’, with a medical degree from outside EU/EEA, choice of employment and medical specialty in Sweden, and to explore and understand a potential over-representation in general practice (family medicine), a specialty suffering from staff shortages in Sweden. Methods A mixed-methods approach was applied. This included questionnaire data from 101 MPs training and working as medical specialists in Sweden and semi-structured interview data from four MPs specializing in general practice. Results Regardless of specialty, the most influential aspects when choosing employment were the ability to combine work with family, to develop one´s competence, and to have highly competent colleagues. Women scored higher on some aspects related to private life and the surroundings. More than half (55%) of the respondents specialized in general practice, and more women than men. The MPs in general practice scored higher on the aspect ‘ability to have the same patients for a longer period’ than MPs specializing in other specialties. No significant difference between MP general practitioner respondents and MPs in other medical specialties was found in relation to the item ‘Was the specialty your first choice?ʼ. Aspects identified in the interviews that influenced the choice to specialize in general practice related to job opportunities, positive experiences of primary health care, working conditions, and family conditions. Conclusion Labour market conditions such as high competition, and the time-consuming recertification process, can influence the choice to specialize in general practice as this reduces the time to become a medical specialist. We however did not find any results indicating that MPs’ decision to specialize in general practice and to work as general practitioners was any less voluntary than that of MPs who chose other specialties.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

Migrant physicians’ choice of employment and the medical specialty general practice: a mixed-methods study

et al. 2021

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“…The survey was divided into three parts: survey instrument items earlier used by Bexelius et al ( 2016 ) and Olsson et al ( 2019 ), the Big Five Inventory (BFI; John & Srivastava, 1999 ), and Measure of Health‐Related Quality of Life (RAND‐36; Hays et al, 1993 ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The survey instrument items earlier used by Bexelius et al ( 2016 ) and Olsson et al ( 2019 ) were modified to fit SN students and the aims of this study and can be viewed in Appendix S1 . Bexelius et al ( 2016 ) and Olsson et al ( 2019 ) survey was focused on physicians' education; therefore, we needed to adapt the content of the questions to fit the nurse's education instead. For part A.1, no major modifications were needed.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For parts A.2 and A.3, major modification was needed because of differences between physicians and nurses' education. Still, the themes of the questions were the same as in items earlier used by Bexelius et al ( 2016 ) and Olsson et al ( 2019 ). In part A.4, more statements about important factors when choosing a particular specialty of nurse education were added to the original items from Bexelius et al ( 2016 ) and Olsson et al ( 2019 ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Factors affecting nurses' decision to undergo a specialist education and to choose a specialty

et al. 2022

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Aims The aims of the study were to identify factors affecting nurses' decision to undergo specialist education and choose a specialty and to describe differences between specialization areas with different types of care. Design A descriptive cross‐sectional design. Methods A survey was conducted among specialist nurse students in three nursing colleges in Sweden (n = 227). Instruments such as Big Five Inventory and RAND‐36 and items earlier used by Bexelius and Olsson were included. Survey data were analysed by using descriptive and analytical statistics, and for open‐ended question qualitative content analysis was used. Results Wage benefit during the education was regarded by 47% as an incentive to start studies. Most of the specialist nurse students considered an opportunity for new tasks (75%), new areas of responsibility (75%), intellectual challenges (72%) and higher wages (71%) to be of high importance when choosing a specialty. However, the students in specialization areas with transitory care‐rated challenges regarding the practical skills (84%) and the occurrence of acute events (82%) higher. Conclusion Although higher wages were important to make nurses feel that they will get value from the education, there were also other important aspects, such as opportunity for new tasks, new areas of responsibility and intellectual challenges that influenced nurses' willingness to undergo a specialist education. Our findings provide employers with the useful information to guide and influence nurses' decisions to enter specialist education and their choice of specialist area.

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“…For example, in many countries too few students are interested in a specialisation in family medicine, psychiatry or Gynecology, which will create a future shortage of physicians in these specialties [1][2][3][4][5][6] . Factors that are taken into account are the research possibilities [3,7], the perceived status of the discipline [8,9] and the patient population [7,10]. This problem is not new -in the 1960s, too few medical students were interested in a career as a general practitioner as well [11].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Programs to encourage working as a general practitioner in rural areas: why do medical students not want to participate? A cross-sectional study

et al. 2022

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Background In many countries, not enough students are interested to work as general practitioners in rural areas. To solve this problem, several, sometimes partly extracurricular, programs have been developed. Most of these programs are based on continuity, which means that students stay in a rural region for an extended period of time, by completing clerkships. Although the effects of these programs are positive, it is often difficult to motivate students to participate. The purpose of the present study is to get insight into the reasons why students choose not to participate in these programs. Methods We carried out a questionnaire study among medical students in the clinical phase of the Technical University of Munich in Germany. First, we asked the students whether they actively informed themselves about the program which aims to reduce the shortage of general practitioners in rural areas in Bavaria. Furthermore, the questionnaire focused on the reasons for not participating in this program. Results Based on the answers of 442 students from study years 3–6, the most frequently chosen reason for not participating in the program is “identification with another discipline” with 61.0%, directly followed by “not willing to commit long-term” (56.1%). In third place is “personal connections to another region” with 30.5%. In the open comments, we find the same reasons: many students do not want to commit to a certain direction too early. In addition, students indicate that the number of regions where this program is offered is too limited for them. Conclusions Offering programs to prepare and motivate students for work as general practitioners in rural areas can contribute to increasing the pool of future general practitioners. To encourage students to participate in such a program, it is important to consider the motives of students. Many students who might be interested in general practice do not choose to take part in such a program because they do not want to commit to a particular specialty or region at an early stage. It is important to take these insights into account when designing and implementing these programs.

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Swedish doctors choice of medical speciality and associations with cultural capital and perceived status: a cross-sectional study

Cited by 8 publications

References 24 publications

Migrant physicians’ choice of employment and the medical specialty general practice: a mixed-methods study

Migrant physicians’ choice of employment and the medical specialty general practice: a mixed-methods study

Factors affecting nurses' decision to undergo a specialist education and to choose a specialty

Programs to encourage working as a general practitioner in rural areas: why do medical students not want to participate? A cross-sectional study

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