Willingness of medical students to be examined in a physical examination course

Abstract

BackgroundPhysical examination courses are an essential part of the education of medical students. The aim of this study was to ascertain the factors influencing students’ motivation and willingness to participate in a physical examination course.MethodsStudents were asked to complete a questionnaire subdivided into five domains: anthropometric data, religiousness, motivation to take part in physical examination courses, willingness to be physically examined at 11 different body regions by peers or a professional tutor and a field for free text.ResultsThe questionnaire was completed by 142 medical students. The importance of the examination course was rated 8.7 / 10 points, the score for students’ motivation was 7.8 / 10 points. Willingness to be physically examined ranged from 6 to 100% depending on body part and examiner. Female students were significantly less willing to be examined at sensitive body parts (breast, upper body, groin and the hip joint; p = .003 to < .001), depending on group composition and / or examiner. Strictly religious students showed significantly less willingness to undergo examination of any part of the body except the hand (p = .02 to < .001). Considering BMI, willingness to be examined showed comparable rates for normal weight and under- / overweight students in general (80% vs. 77%). Concerning the composition of the group for physical examination skills courses, students preferred self-assembled over mixed gender and same gender groups.ConclusionsPeer physical examination is a method to improve students’ skills. While motivation to participate in and acceptance of the physical examination course appears to be high, willingness to be examined is low for certain parts of the body, e.g. breast and groin, depending on religiousness, gender and examiner. Examination by a professional medical tutor did not lead to higher acceptance. Most students would prefer to choose their team for physical examination courses themselves rather than be assigned to a group.

Syrian medical students’ acceptance of peer physical examination and its associating factors: a cross-sectional study

“…It was expected that the students would be less comfortable with the intimate areas which were proven by our results; the groin area is the most unacceptable area to be examined among both males and females, followed by the breast. That agrees with the findings of [ 7 , 11 ]. In contrast, the non- intimate areas were highly accepted to be examined by both genders which is similar to the findings of similar studies in western societies [ 3 , 8 ].…”

“…1 ) showed a big difference between the willingness of the two genders to take part in the PPE; males were more willing to participate than females, which is considered to be an interesting result that points out many underlying reasons. Religion is probably the most controversial one as other studies found [ 11 , 12 ], especially by the fact that the Syrian community is considered to be conservative, which limits the usage of PPE due to the possible interaction between the opposite genders which is forbidden in the Islamic faith. Even though the religious constraints affected both genders, our results indicated that females’ opinions were more related to religion than males’ opinions.…”

Trauma-Informed Medical Education (TIME): Advancing Curricular Content and Educational Context

“…A survey of 142 medical students found that students acknowledged the importance of learning and practicing the physical exam but had varying levels of willingness to be examined by peers or preceptors. 42 Thirty-nine percent of female students felt unwilling to have their hip joint examined by a male peer, and 23% of female students felt unwilling to have male students examine their abdomen. 42 For more sensitive exams (e.g., groin, breast), depending on the gender of student and examiner, as many as 93% of students were unwilling to be examined by a peer.…”

“…42 Thirty-nine percent of female students felt unwilling to have their hip joint examined by a male peer, and 23% of female students felt unwilling to have male students examine their abdomen. 42 For more sensitive exams (e.g., groin, breast), depending on the gender of student and examiner, as many as 93% of students were unwilling to be examined by a peer. 42 Students preferred self-assembled peer exam groups over same- and mixed-gender groups, suggesting that students were more comfortable when able to form their own learning cohorts.…”

“…42 For more sensitive exams (e.g., groin, breast), depending on the gender of student and examiner, as many as 93% of students were unwilling to be examined by a peer. 42 Students preferred self-assembled peer exam groups over same- and mixed-gender groups, suggesting that students were more comfortable when able to form their own learning cohorts. 42 Empowering students to choose which learning format (e.g., self-assembled groups, same-gender groups, mixed-gender groups, another modality) demonstrates the power of voice, choice, and peer support to enhance the learning environment.…”