Swedish medical students' expectations of their future life

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate future life expectations among male and female medical students in their first and final year.MethodsThe study was cross-sectional and conducted at a Swedish medical school. Out of 600 invited students, 507 (85%) answered an open-ended question about their future life, 298 (59%) first-year students and 209 (41%) last-year students. Women constituted 60% of the respondents. A mixed model design was applied; qualitative content analysis was utilized to create statistically comparable themes and categories.ResultsStudents’ written answers were coded, categorized and clustered into four themes: “Work”, “Family”, “Leisure” and “Quality of personal life”. Almost all students included aspects of work in their answers. Female students were more detailed than male ones in their family concerns. Almost a third of all students reflected on a future work-life balance, but considerations regarding quality of personal life and leisure were more common among last-year students.ConclusionsToday’s medical students expect more of life than work, especially those standing on the doorstep of working life. They intend to balance work not only with a family but also with leisure activities. Our results reflect work attitudes that challenge the health care system for more adaptive working conditions. We suggest that discussions about work-life balance should be included in medical curricula.

Show what you know and deal with stress yourself: a qualitative interview study of medical interns’ perceptions of stress and gender

“…Swedish medical students have reported that they are not prepared to sacrifice family life and hobbies although these wishes may not be fulfilled upon their entrance into the profession [63,70,71]. Nevertheless, multiple roles may mitigate strain; having children has repeatedly been shown not to statistically explain stress or even to be a protective determinant for stress in highly educated women including physicians [13,16].…”

Women's Participation in the Medical Profession: Insights from Experiences in Japan, Scandinavia, Russia, and Eastern Europe

“…35 Nevertheless, some suggest that perceptions of work-life balance are changing among the current generation of medical students in the direction of promoting gender balance in various specialties and a more family-oriented medical culture. 35,37 In one cross-sectional survey of 507 Swedish medical students, a significant number of male and female students reported considering work-life balance an important part of their future life expectations. 37 Furthermore, the proportions of female and male physicians working part time in Sweden have increased and grown more equitable in the past decade, reflecting the younger generation's different views and expectations of the medical profession.…”

“…35,37 In one cross-sectional survey of 507 Swedish medical students, a significant number of male and female students reported considering work-life balance an important part of their future life expectations. 37 Furthermore, the proportions of female and male physicians working part time in Sweden have increased and grown more equitable in the past decade, reflecting the younger generation's different views and expectations of the medical profession. 37 In Finland, the representation of women in medicine has surpassed the rest of Scandinavia, as 56% of physicians are female and 66% of physicians under 35 were women in 2012.…”

“…37 Furthermore, the proportions of female and male physicians working part time in Sweden have increased and grown more equitable in the past decade, reflecting the younger generation's different views and expectations of the medical profession. 37 In Finland, the representation of women in medicine has surpassed the rest of Scandinavia, as 56% of physicians are female and 66% of physicians under 35 were women in 2012. 38 Most (64%) Finnish physicians are specialists, and of these, 52% were female.…”

Motivation towards medical career choice and future career plans of Polish medical students

“…Studies of motivation towards career choice of medical students have been carried out among applicants to medical school (McManus et al 2006 ), freshmen (Millan et al 2005 ; Baboolal and Hutchinson 2007 ; Draper and Louw 2007 ), final year students/graduates (Dastjerdi et al 2012 ; de Vries et al 2010 ) students in selected years (Aasland et al 2008 ; Avgerinos et al 2006 ; Amin et al 2009 ; Crossley and Mubarik 2002 ; Diderichsen et al 2011 ; Drinkwater et al 2008 ; Puljak et al 2007 ), as well as all students registered at an institution (Al-Fouzan et al 2012 ; Ferrinho et al 2011 ; Heiligers 2012 ; Mandeville et al 2012 ). The results of these studies are often inconsistent.…”